Contact: Zack Plair
STARKVILLE, Miss.—The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in Jackson will honor the highest achieving men’s college basketball team in the state’s history with an anniversary ceremony March 31.
Head Coach Richard Williams and his 1995-96 Mississippi State Bulldogs will celebrate the 20th anniversary of their historic run to the Final Four with the event, sponsored by Farm Bureau and Wier Boerner Allin Architecture. It will begin with a 5:30 p.m. reception, followed at 7 p.m. with dinner and a program.
The 1995-96 Bulldogs tallied a 26-8 overall record, including an 84-73 upset victory over eventual national champion Kentucky in the Southeastern Conference Tournament title game.
Entering the NCAA Tournament as a No. 5 seed, the Bulldogs won the Southeast Region with victories over No. 12 seed Virginia Commonwealth (58-51), No. 13 seed Princeton (63-41), top-seeded Connecticut (60-55) and No. 2 seed Cincinnati (73-63). Syracuse handed the Bulldogs a 77-69 defeat in the national semifinals at the Meadowlands in New York to halt their tournament run.
“It really doesn’t seem like it’s been 20 years because somebody brings it up almost every day,” said Williams, who served as head coach for MSU from 1986-98. “I see a lot of the guys often, but I’m really looking forward to getting back together as a team.”
The Bulldogs went into the 1995-96 season replacing three starters from a squad that had reached the Sweet 16 the previous year. They struggled early, notably with a non-conference home loss to Arkansas-Little Rock, and dropped four of their first seven conference games before winning 15 of their last 18 games.
Built around 6-11 center Erick Dampier, who averaged 14.5 points, 9.3 rebounds and three blocks per game, the starting lineup also boasted shooting guard Daryl Wilson, who led the team with 18 points per game, and forward Dontae' Jones, who averaged 14.7 points per game. Point guard Marcus Bullard and power forward Russell Waters completed the starting lineup, while sophomore Whit Hughes and freshmen Bart Hyche and Tyrone Washington regularly contributed off the bench.
“This marks the 50th year I have covered sports in Mississippi,” said Rick Cleveland, historian and retired director for the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame who helped chronicle MSU’s season as sports editor for the Clarion Ledger. “The run that the 1996 Bulldogs made to the Final Four, including beating Kentucky in the SEC Tournament, was as meaningful and as exciting as anything else I have covered. I’ll never forget it.”
For ticket or table information, call the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum at 601-982-8264. To order tickets online, visit http://msfame.com/product/farm-bureau-salutes-the-1996-final-four-dogs/.
MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.