Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen says a little bit of adversity isnt always a bad thing and tough times can make a team better.If thats the case, the Bulldogs hope the results come sooner rather than later.Theres no denying its been a rough first half of the season for Mississippi State (2-4, 1-2 Southeastern Conference), which has lost three of its last four games, including last weeks 28-21 double overtime loss at BYU.The BYU setback was undeniably frustrating -- especially since Mississippi State led for a big chunk of the evening -- but at least there was some reason for optimism. The Bulldogs were much more competitive than the week before, when they fell behind 35-0 at home before losing to Auburn 38-14.Mullen said the team played physical and hard in the BYU loss, but crucial mistakes -- including personal foul penalties and missed assignments -- are keeping the Bulldogs out of the win column.Some of the silly penalties we had overshadowed some tremendous efforts we had on the defensive side of the ball, but you see some young guys start to make plays and play a little better, Mullen said.Mississippi State appears to have a few winnable games ahead of it, starting with a road matchup against Kentucky (3-3, 2-2) on Saturday. The Bulldogs have won seven straight games in the series dating back to 2009.But Kentucky has played better of late, winning three of its last four.Mississippi State hasnt had nearly as much to celebrate lately.Mullen said he hopes the Bulldogs will do a better job in the passing game against Kentucky after an up-and-down week against BYU. Sophomore Nick Fitzgerald continued his inconsistent play, completing 17 of 36 passes for 214 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.One bright spot was Fitzgeralds short pass to freshman Keith Mixon, who ran 44 yards down the sideline for the Bulldogs first touchdown against BYU. Other than that, Mississippi State struggled to create big offensive plays.Mullen says hes willing to take shots downfield. Its up to his players to execute.I dont think weve decreased the number of shots we have taken down the field, Mullen said. I think weve decreased the efficiency of our shots downfield. I think we have to hit a couple of those.Mississippi States offense is working around the absence of starting running back Brandon Holloway. The senior missed the BYU game because of an ankle injury and his return for the Kentucky game is in doubt.Thats meant larger roles for others like sophomore Aeris Williams, who ran for a team-high 82 yards against BYU. Mixon, who has scored a touchdown in two straight games, and sophomore Malik Dear have also become a bigger part of the offense.Its just opportunities for someone else to take and step up, Dear said. Brandon (Holloway) is a great player and we are going to try to do what he does best and to fill his role. But Brandon can only be Brandon, Keith can only be Keith and Malik can only be Malik. So we are going to go out there and do what we can do.-----Follow David Brandt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidbrandtAP . AP College Football website: www.collegefootball.ap.org . Rod Woodson Womens Jersey . 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Badenhop was 2-3 with a 3.47 ERA in 63 relief appearances for Milwaukee this season. He is 18-20 in his career with three saves and a 3. WACO, Texas -- Kalani Brown set career highs with 25 points, 19 rebounds and six assists as No. 2 Baylor took over after halftime on way to an 84-70 victory over ninth-ranked UCLA on Monday night.A layup by Alexis Jones early in the fourth quarter started a 14-0 run over a 5-minute span for the Lady Bears (2-0), who led 82-63 when Beatrice Mompremier made a free throw with 3:24 left.Jordin Canada led UCLA (1-1) with 23 points, while Monique Billings had 16 points with 10 rebounds. Kari Korver had 13 points.Baylor had trailed 48-41 at halftime, but got even in the first 2 minutes of the third quarter. Alexis Prince hit a 3-pointer before Jones and Brown each had baskets, and assisted each other.Preseason All-America forward Nina Davis, Prince and Jones each had 15 points for Baylor.The Lady Bears led for good when Davis had consecutive baskets late in the third quarter to break a 57-all tie.BIG PICTUREUCLA: While the Bruins played like a top-10 team most of the first half, they just didnt have a big body to match up with Brown, the 6-foot-7 sophomore for Baylor. Redshirt senior Nicole Kornet had certainly hoped for a more productive return too Texas -- shes from Dallas, about 100 miles from Waco, and had played in the Ferrell Center before during three seasons with Oklahoma.dddddddddddd. After 15 points and eight rebounds in her UCLA debut, she got in foul trouble early. She finished with nine points, but had only four points on 1-of-4 shooting before some points down the stretch.Baylor: With consecutive games against top-10 opponents coach Kim Mulkey leaned on the returning players. The three freshmen for the Lady Bears are going to be standout players, but Lauren Cox was 0-for-4 shooting with two rebounds in 4 minutes, and Natalie Chou was 0-for-1 with two rebounds in 12 minutes. Juicy Landrum didnt even play. All three got significant action in the season-opening rout over Houston Baptist.UP NEXTUCLA returns home to play at home twice in three days. The Bruins play Southern University on Friday, then host Cal Poly on Sunday.Baylor hits the road for the first time and plays another top-10 opponent. The Lady Bears play Thursday at third-ranked UConn. ' ' '