Good morning! Tennis season is back in full swing, and one former Bulldog is having his big moment at the Australian Open. Nuno Borges knocked off the No. 23 ranked player in the world to reach the third round of the tournament for the first time at a Grand Slam.

What else did we throw into today’s Bulldog Brew?

🏀 Women’s basketball recap
⚾️ Four freshmen crack the top 75 list
🐶 And much, much more!

🎥 COURTSIDE CONVERSATIONS

Courtside Conversations: Trey Fort. Learn more about Trey Fort's journey from junior college to the SEC as he sits down with Joey Petersen in this edition of Courtside Conversations.

🎥 BULLDOG BREAKDOWN

Bulldog Breakdown: Nicholls State. Join Coach Richard Williams as he walks you through the Bulldog's victory against Nicholls State. Gain insider insights, tactical analysis, and a front-row seat to the thrilling moments that defined that game.

📈 STOCK UP

🔼 Finished the Fight. The Bulldogs went into halftime with the lead but were unable to close out a win at The Hump and fell 75-64 against Tennessee. Mississippi State is now 15-5 on the season and 2-3 in conference play. Forward Erynn Barnum led the team in points and rebounds to finish with her eighth career double-double on 15 points and 12 rebounds, while guard Lauren Park-Lane added 10 points and a team-high five assists. 

🔼 Top Dawgs. The Diamond Dawgs will be rolling into the 2024 season with four of its players ranked inside Perfect Game’s list of top 75 freshmen. Dylan Cupp led the State players on the list coming in as the 46^th- best freshman player in the nation, followed by Mikhai Grant at No. 50, Luke Dotson at No. 69 and Nolan Stevens at No. 71. The four Bulldog freshmen on the list are the fifth-most by any school in the nation.

These four standout freshmen, alongside the entire Diamond Dawg roster, will get the 2024 season underway on Feb. 16 when they host Air Force for a three-game series at The Dude.

🔼 Guess Who’s Back. She’s back! The former Volleydawg standout, Margaret Dean, will join the program again after being named the new Director of Volleyball Operations. Dean helped play a vital role in the historic 2021 season that led the Bulldogs to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in program history. Dean appeared in all 31 matches that year and collected 683 assists and 236 digs during the season. In her career, Dean registered 1,015 total assists and 385 digs.

🗣️ “Margaret made a huge impact on our program in two short seasons, and I know she will do the same in this new role. She is driven, organized, focused and fiery and will help us give our student-athletes an incredible experience here in StarkVegas!” - Julie Darty Dennis

📚️ Read more about Dean and the impact she has made in the past and the impact she will have going forward

🔼 Ready To Go. Bulldog men’s tennis is gearing up for a top 20 matchup inside the Rula Tennis Pavilion on Friday as part of a doubleheader as they get set to host No. 20 Florida State. The Bulldogs will head into the matchup ranked No. 17 in the nation following a 2-0 start to the season after having shut out Northern Illinois and Chattanooga last weekend.

State’s singles lineup features No. 13 Petar Jovanovic whose .750 career winning percentage is tied for the fifth-best in school history. Jovanovic also makes up half of the No. 24 doubles duo in the country alongside fellow sophomore Benito Sanchez Martinez. Jovanovic is currently on a five-match win streak in singles play while senior Carles Hernandez has won six consecutive singles matches dating back to last spring.

🔍️ See the scouting reports on both No. 20 Florida State and Tennessee State

🔼 Schedule Update! The Bulldogs’ women’s tennis match against Samford on Saturday, Jan. 20 has been moved to 1 p.m., and Saturday’s match against Alcorn State has officially been canceled.

🤔 BULLDOG TRIVIA

Historic Run. We mentioned the Volleydawg squad from 2021 and their historic season that resulted in an NCAA Tournament appearance, but can you name which Bulldog volleyball player finished the 2021 season with the most points?

Think you know the answer? Scroll down to the bottom to find out!

📬 STICK WITH US

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🐶 DAWG DAILY

Today’s Dawg Daily: Return of the Mailbag. Joey and Jalyn discuss Mississippi State's loss to the Vols as well as reasons to not give up hope on hoops. Plus, the mailbag returns for the first time in the new year!

✅ Listen to today’s Dawg Daily on Spotify

🍎 Listen to today’s Dawg Daily on Apple Podcasts

📆 LOOKING AHEAD

Friday 1/19

🎾 Men’s Tennis vs. Florida State @ 1:00pm in Starkville, MS | Watch | Live Stats

🎾 Men’s Tennis vs. Tennessee State @ 5:00pm in Starkville, MS | Watch | Live Stats

Saturday 1/20

🎾 Women’s Tennis vs. Samford @ 11:00am in Starkville, MS | Watch | Live Stats

🏀 Men’s Basketball vs. Vanderbilt @ 2:30pm in Starkville, MS | Tickets | Watch | Listen | Live Stats

🎾 Women’s Tennis vs. Alcorn State @ 3:00pm in Starkville, MS | Watch | Live Stats

Sunday 1/21

No scheduled events

🐶 Click here to see the full Mississippi State Athletics Calendar

🎉 TRIVIA ANSWER

Answer: Gabby Waden!

Waden led the Bulldogs with 468.5 points in the 2021 season and averaged 3.84 points per set.

🐶 Have a great weekend, y'all!