Ben Howland's team is respected around college basketball even before playing their first game.
Bulldog fans have several reasons to be excited for the 2015 college basketball season, the biggest of which is five-star guard Malik Newman, who will make his Bulldog debut in less than a month.
As Newman and the rest of his teammates continue practicing in preparation for their November 13 opener against Eastern Washington, they are drawing individual and team praise from the media.
Newman was voted second-team All-SEC on Wednesday, while MSU was picked to finish eighth in the conference -- one point away from passing South Carolina at seventh.