November 11, 2026 | Men's Basketball
STARKVILLE - Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans met with the media leading into Friday's Greenbrier Tipoff against Xavier.
2026-27 Mississippi State Men's Basketball Quotes
Coach Jans Media Session – November, 2026
Transcript Powered by State 1878
Q: What are impressions as you prepare to face Xavier on Friday?
CJ: "They're huge. They've got to be one of the bigger college basketball teams from who they play in starting lineups, who they play just from height, size, weight. I'm sure KenPom has what they are in terms of the ranks of everything. I know that's one of them. I haven't got that deep yet. Doesn't really matter what they say in that because just knowing the players that they have on the court and watching them play, I think that'll be a challenge for our team. When we get out there, we can talk to them and we can show them. It'll be like stepping out in the cold for the first time. We haven't played a team that has that much size, length, and girth, and the court's going to feel smaller."
"That will be something that our kids are going to have to get used to, but that's what sticks out initially when I think about Xavier, and then just great experience. They have a lot of international players that seem to be very comfortable with their game, with just being on the court, and their experience shows through in how they play. They've got a lot of guys that have been around the block a couple times, so they've seen it all in college basketball and they've got a very, very good team."
Q: Is there any difference scouting early season opponents compared to years past?
CJ: "It wasn't easier, no. We didn't get everything we wanted, unfortunately, but we definitely got enough. At this point, we've each played pretty much three games. So, all those are available and people get one or two of the exhibition games and you've got enough. Going forward, it won't be as big of an issue, they've done well in all of their games. They haven't lost in any of their exhibition games or obviously their early regular season games."
"They're certainly like us, going to be going up a weight class from what they've played in the regular season. They played obviously some really good programs in the exhibition with Kent State, Tennessee, and Dayton. But in the regular season, you know, they've taken care of business at home and won by large margins. This will be the first big test for both programs this Friday."
Q: What type of environment are you expecting at The Greenbrier Tipoff?
CJ: "I'm not sure exactly what the environment is. People asked me if I was going to play golf once they heard that we were going to Greenbrier. My response is I don't think we're going to have quite enough time to get around [to] it. I've played in plenty of ballrooms and hotels over the course of being in this for as long as I have, so I'd assume it'll be very similar to these other venues where it's very nice in terms of shoot around and meals and going to the game. It's kind of fun that way where you can walk and get on a bus and deal with traffic or getting off the bus, et cetera. It's nice that way once you get there and get situated, you don't have to leave the property."
"In terms of how many people are going to be there, what the crowd setup is, certainly we get an opportunity the night before to shoot around in the gym, and then the day of the game, we get a slot like always to have our game day shoot around. We'll have a lot of time to get familiar because the game is obviously pretty late on Friday. When you do this long enough, even as a player with those kinds of things, you just kind of roll with the punches."
Q: Can you talk about ND's play so far this season?
CJ: "He's got to be important all year long. He plays a position that there's just a lot of size in college basketball right now. Like I already mentioned, on Friday, they've got a bunch of big dudes and accomplished guys. He'll be integral for our success in this particular game. In terms of lack of numbers, I'm not concerned about it. He probably is. Players probably get more caught up with that than the coaches do and I understand how that works. He just needs to know that there's a lot of value to what you can bring to the table each and every night, regardless of what the stat sheet says or doesn't say."
"Hopefully he's experienced enough and listening enough to understand being assignment correct in ball screen defense, understanding how to trap and how to shield the rim. When you don't get a block, but you deter the opponent from scoring at the basket or being on a timely rotation, all the things that are crucial to the game, setting physical ball screens that don't show up in a stat sheet."
"You try to educate your players to be complete players and not get so married to, 'Oh, I play well because I score this many points, or I didn't get enough opportunities.' That's something you will fight all the time with individual players and sometimes even teams. But we try to make sure our guys understand the value in winning and sacrifice and he's going to have opportunities. He'll have nights where the stat line will look shinier and some of these games are hard for a guy like that to play in because there's not a guy a lot of guys across the room that look like him. They're not built like him, so we've had to play some small ball more than we probably will against teams that look like us."
Q: What are your takeaways from the first three matchups?
CJ: "There's a ton to like. As everyone says at this time of year, we're [a] work in progress and you have to learn and grow while it's time to see where we're at. Offensively, we've had great runs. We've been stagnant at times where our movement away from the ball isn't what we'd like. Sometimes the ball sticks a little bit too much at times, and not even a selfish way, just in, 'Hey, I can make a play against the guy defending me,' and that will end up costing us later against the better teams."
"Teams have switched quite a bit against us in these early games and it's kind of got us to be stagnant offensively at times. We got a little frustrated when we thought we could throw the ball inside a few more times when people were open and we missed them. We're trying to correct all that stuff."
"Defensively, we've gotten better. We've gotten better, which is what you want to see. You'll hear me say this all year long, and those that have been around here know how I feel about guarding the ball. The number one priority of any defense, in my opinion, is having individual guys that have pride in their craft and are excellent on-ball defenders, and it's something that has ebbed and flowed this year thus far. We're fairly connected on defense but certainly got a lot of work to do with our schemes and rotations. When we up the ante a little bit on who we're playing and the sophistication of some of the offenses and obviously level of players, we'll get tested a lot more here going forward."
Q: How are you feeling going into a stretch in the schedule away from home?
CJ: "Good question. We felt with the new team that we wanted to start out at home the way we did. With having the exhibition games, and then with Josh [Hubbard]'s situation, it didn't work out exactly the way we wanted it to. Fortunately, we had some games where we were going to be the favorite and if we took care of business, we could get the W and still learn and grow. That was fortunate that way. We knew we needed to challenge our team like we do every year. It wasn't perfect in terms of not playing a home game for that long a stretch, but Thanksgiving break we're going to be gone, so that works out fine."
"Even though it's not in The Hump, we're playing a Jackson game, so it breaks up the true neutral and true away games that way. Those neutral games and the away games from a quad perspective give you more of an opportunity to try to bank a good win or two before you get to the SEC. There's certainly a lot of thought that goes into scheduling every single year, and that's how this one worked out."
Q: Can you talk about this recruiting cycle?
CJ: "I'm not trying to be coy, but we're not sure we're done yet. Let's put it that way. We're still recruiting. We're still active. We've still got some irons in the fire and assigned period stretches. It's not just Wednesday. It goes for seven full days. We're not sure exactly how it will pan out, but obviously we'll have more thoughts and statements once we get through the next seven or eight days and see where we land."
Q: Can you talk about managing recruiting between transfer and high school?
CJ: "Really good question. It's a constant evaluation. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your perspective, it's just what you do. You don't have a choice anymore. You've got to be constantly thinking about projecting guys you have and are they what we thought? Are they better? Are they not? How will they fit in the system? Do you think they'll want to come back? The financial component makes a big difference in it as well, but it is a constant process."
"I'm not saying we talk about it every single day, but we talk about it a lot. It's changed a lot. You're always thinking about the next team, or you used to think about just your classes. We wanted to have balanced classes back in the day, and you'd put up on your board your team this year, your team next year, your team two years from now, and you put it up there and you'd have it, because you were just pretty comfortable with these kids that were freshmen were going to be here."
"That's all gone. The only team you're worried about is this one and the next one. That's it. You don't even dream to think about what you're going to look like after that. And even saying that, it's very, very challenging to try to project because you can do all the projections you want in the spring, if someone makes a decision to go in the portal and even if it's someone that you don't expect to, those plans get thrown out the window and you're kind of back to square one. Yes, there's a lot of projections, there's a lot of evaluations, but it's constantly evolving."
2026-27 Mississippi State Men's Basketball Quotes
Coach Jans Media Session – November, 2026
Transcript Powered by State 1878
Q: What are impressions as you prepare to face Xavier on Friday?
CJ: "They're huge. They've got to be one of the bigger college basketball teams from who they play in starting lineups, who they play just from height, size, weight. I'm sure KenPom has what they are in terms of the ranks of everything. I know that's one of them. I haven't got that deep yet. Doesn't really matter what they say in that because just knowing the players that they have on the court and watching them play, I think that'll be a challenge for our team. When we get out there, we can talk to them and we can show them. It'll be like stepping out in the cold for the first time. We haven't played a team that has that much size, length, and girth, and the court's going to feel smaller."
"That will be something that our kids are going to have to get used to, but that's what sticks out initially when I think about Xavier, and then just great experience. They have a lot of international players that seem to be very comfortable with their game, with just being on the court, and their experience shows through in how they play. They've got a lot of guys that have been around the block a couple times, so they've seen it all in college basketball and they've got a very, very good team."
Q: Is there any difference scouting early season opponents compared to years past?
CJ: "It wasn't easier, no. We didn't get everything we wanted, unfortunately, but we definitely got enough. At this point, we've each played pretty much three games. So, all those are available and people get one or two of the exhibition games and you've got enough. Going forward, it won't be as big of an issue, they've done well in all of their games. They haven't lost in any of their exhibition games or obviously their early regular season games."
"They're certainly like us, going to be going up a weight class from what they've played in the regular season. They played obviously some really good programs in the exhibition with Kent State, Tennessee, and Dayton. But in the regular season, you know, they've taken care of business at home and won by large margins. This will be the first big test for both programs this Friday."
Q: What type of environment are you expecting at The Greenbrier Tipoff?
CJ: "I'm not sure exactly what the environment is. People asked me if I was going to play golf once they heard that we were going to Greenbrier. My response is I don't think we're going to have quite enough time to get around [to] it. I've played in plenty of ballrooms and hotels over the course of being in this for as long as I have, so I'd assume it'll be very similar to these other venues where it's very nice in terms of shoot around and meals and going to the game. It's kind of fun that way where you can walk and get on a bus and deal with traffic or getting off the bus, et cetera. It's nice that way once you get there and get situated, you don't have to leave the property."
"In terms of how many people are going to be there, what the crowd setup is, certainly we get an opportunity the night before to shoot around in the gym, and then the day of the game, we get a slot like always to have our game day shoot around. We'll have a lot of time to get familiar because the game is obviously pretty late on Friday. When you do this long enough, even as a player with those kinds of things, you just kind of roll with the punches."
Q: Can you talk about ND's play so far this season?
CJ: "He's got to be important all year long. He plays a position that there's just a lot of size in college basketball right now. Like I already mentioned, on Friday, they've got a bunch of big dudes and accomplished guys. He'll be integral for our success in this particular game. In terms of lack of numbers, I'm not concerned about it. He probably is. Players probably get more caught up with that than the coaches do and I understand how that works. He just needs to know that there's a lot of value to what you can bring to the table each and every night, regardless of what the stat sheet says or doesn't say."
"Hopefully he's experienced enough and listening enough to understand being assignment correct in ball screen defense, understanding how to trap and how to shield the rim. When you don't get a block, but you deter the opponent from scoring at the basket or being on a timely rotation, all the things that are crucial to the game, setting physical ball screens that don't show up in a stat sheet."
"You try to educate your players to be complete players and not get so married to, 'Oh, I play well because I score this many points, or I didn't get enough opportunities.' That's something you will fight all the time with individual players and sometimes even teams. But we try to make sure our guys understand the value in winning and sacrifice and he's going to have opportunities. He'll have nights where the stat line will look shinier and some of these games are hard for a guy like that to play in because there's not a guy a lot of guys across the room that look like him. They're not built like him, so we've had to play some small ball more than we probably will against teams that look like us."
Q: What are your takeaways from the first three matchups?
CJ: "There's a ton to like. As everyone says at this time of year, we're [a] work in progress and you have to learn and grow while it's time to see where we're at. Offensively, we've had great runs. We've been stagnant at times where our movement away from the ball isn't what we'd like. Sometimes the ball sticks a little bit too much at times, and not even a selfish way, just in, 'Hey, I can make a play against the guy defending me,' and that will end up costing us later against the better teams."
"Teams have switched quite a bit against us in these early games and it's kind of got us to be stagnant offensively at times. We got a little frustrated when we thought we could throw the ball inside a few more times when people were open and we missed them. We're trying to correct all that stuff."
"Defensively, we've gotten better. We've gotten better, which is what you want to see. You'll hear me say this all year long, and those that have been around here know how I feel about guarding the ball. The number one priority of any defense, in my opinion, is having individual guys that have pride in their craft and are excellent on-ball defenders, and it's something that has ebbed and flowed this year thus far. We're fairly connected on defense but certainly got a lot of work to do with our schemes and rotations. When we up the ante a little bit on who we're playing and the sophistication of some of the offenses and obviously level of players, we'll get tested a lot more here going forward."
Q: How are you feeling going into a stretch in the schedule away from home?
CJ: "Good question. We felt with the new team that we wanted to start out at home the way we did. With having the exhibition games, and then with Josh [Hubbard]'s situation, it didn't work out exactly the way we wanted it to. Fortunately, we had some games where we were going to be the favorite and if we took care of business, we could get the W and still learn and grow. That was fortunate that way. We knew we needed to challenge our team like we do every year. It wasn't perfect in terms of not playing a home game for that long a stretch, but Thanksgiving break we're going to be gone, so that works out fine."
"Even though it's not in The Hump, we're playing a Jackson game, so it breaks up the true neutral and true away games that way. Those neutral games and the away games from a quad perspective give you more of an opportunity to try to bank a good win or two before you get to the SEC. There's certainly a lot of thought that goes into scheduling every single year, and that's how this one worked out."
Q: Can you talk about this recruiting cycle?
CJ: "I'm not trying to be coy, but we're not sure we're done yet. Let's put it that way. We're still recruiting. We're still active. We've still got some irons in the fire and assigned period stretches. It's not just Wednesday. It goes for seven full days. We're not sure exactly how it will pan out, but obviously we'll have more thoughts and statements once we get through the next seven or eight days and see where we land."
Q: Can you talk about managing recruiting between transfer and high school?
CJ: "Really good question. It's a constant evaluation. Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on your perspective, it's just what you do. You don't have a choice anymore. You've got to be constantly thinking about projecting guys you have and are they what we thought? Are they better? Are they not? How will they fit in the system? Do you think they'll want to come back? The financial component makes a big difference in it as well, but it is a constant process."
"I'm not saying we talk about it every single day, but we talk about it a lot. It's changed a lot. You're always thinking about the next team, or you used to think about just your classes. We wanted to have balanced classes back in the day, and you'd put up on your board your team this year, your team next year, your team two years from now, and you put it up there and you'd have it, because you were just pretty comfortable with these kids that were freshmen were going to be here."
"That's all gone. The only team you're worried about is this one and the next one. That's it. You don't even dream to think about what you're going to look like after that. And even saying that, it's very, very challenging to try to project because you can do all the projections you want in the spring, if someone makes a decision to go in the portal and even if it's someone that you don't expect to, those plans get thrown out the window and you're kind of back to square one. Yes, there's a lot of projections, there's a lot of evaluations, but it's constantly evolving."
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