Morning Bell: July 22, 2024: Former Bulldogs Tennis Star Down Rafael Nadal; Earns First Career ATP Title

Your daily briefing on what is going on with Mississippi State Athletics, including complete TV listings.

Jan 22, 2024; Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; Daniil Medvedev of Russia hits a shot against Nuno Borges of Portugal in the fourth round of the men's singles at the Australian Open in Melbourne. Mandatory Credit: Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports / Mike Frey-USA TODAY Sports

Nuno Borges, who suited up for Mississippi State from 2015-2019, became just the second Portuguese born player to claim an ATP Title, defeating the legendary Rafael Nadal this weekend 6-3, 6-2.

Borges was a five-time All-American in his time with the Bulldogs as well as a three-time SEC Player of the Year winner. He helped lead Mississippi State to conference titles in 2018 and 2019 and is one of the program's most decorated players in its history.

Another Mississippi State alumnus put together a strong performance as well this weekend as former Bulldogs forward Tolu Smith compiled yet another double-double in the Summer League, dropping 15 points and picking up 14 rebounds against the Knicks. Through four appearances thus far throughout the Summer League, Smith is averaging nearly eleven points per game and just over ten rebounds per game.

Though Smith went undrafted in this year's draft, he is making the most of his opportunity with the Pistons and could likely find himself on an NBA roster if he continues to play at such a high level.

Finally, in Bulldogs football news, Mississippi State was selected to finish 15th in the SEC at Media Days this year. With first head coach Jeff Lebby inheriting a team that struggled through most of 2023, this is a team that very few are high on. Though Lebby has managed to put together a fairly strong first recruiting class, he will have a lot to prove on the field this year.

Countdown to Mississippi State's Season Opener

40 Days

Daily Dose of Mike Leach 

"We found bones of dinosaurs and everything else, but we haven't found bones that I've heard of, of Bigfoot. It would be fun if there's Bigfoot. I hope there's Bigfoot. But my guess would be there's not."

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