Mississippi State center Michael Nwoko embraces change of scenery
Michael Nwoko was introduced to college basketball last year and saw limited time his freshman season at Miami. Now at Mississippi State, the sophomore center is still facing a lot of adjustments to college basketball.
Nwoko was one of State’s first transfer commitments in the offseason and he reported to campus in June. Since then, Nwoko has been getting used to head coach Chris Jans and his program along with his surroundings.
“It’s been a lot, for sure,” Nwoko said. “A different change from Miami. It’s been really good. Just getting with my teammates and getting a whole lot better. Just understanding how Coach Jans coaches and how he runs his team.”
While in the transfer portal, Nwoko wasted little time finding his new school. He saw the success the Bulldogs had with centers in the past and it made for an easy decision with his future.
“I would say the play style,” mentioned Nwoko. “Seeing what they did with Tolu Smith last year, felt like this is somewhere I wanted to play at. So when they hit me up, it was a good thing.”
Of course, Nwoko has plenty of competition at the five spot this season. The Bulldogs also added Rhode Island transfer Jeremy Foumena in the offseason along with returnees Gai Chol and KeShawn Murphy, who is playing a little at the five spot.
“It’s been really good,” remarked Nwoko. “Playing with those guys day-in and day-out, it’s been beneficial to me and to the team, for sure. Being able to play against Murph, Jeremy and Gai every day, it’s definitely got me a whole lot better.”
However, who gets the starting call remains up for grabs and nothing has been earned at this point of the preseason.
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“I’m not sure yet and Coach Jans likes to keep us on our feet,” added Nwoko about his role. “Obviously, we’re going out there competing in practice, competing for minutes.”
But regardless of who manages to be in the starting lineup, Nwoko knows his role is going to significantly increase from what it was at Miami. Last season he averaged just 8.8 minutes a game for the Hurricanes and had 2.7 points and 2.0 rebounds a game. Realizing his opportunity on the floor for the Bulldogs has also boosted his confidence.
“I would definitely say the confidence factor, for sure,” Nwoko explained. “Just being able to go in there every night and knowing I will be on the court. It definitely plays a big part and big facet.”
On November 4th against West Georgia, things get real for Nwoko and the Bulldogs as the open their season that night at Humphrey Coliseum. He opens the season in a different uniform, a different city and a different conference. But it all been productive changes for Nwoko.
“From top to bottom, I feel like the way (Jans) meshes the team together is a lot different than it was at Miami,” noted Nwoko. “But they’ve been good changes. How we run our offense, how we focus on having such a defensive-focused team, as well. There are a lot of things that are a lot different. I don’t think there are two things that are the same compared to Miami.”
