#7 MSU Unfazed By Rivalry Match-up to Ole Miss

STARKVILLE, Miss. (MSU Athletics/WCBI) – No.7/6 Mississippi State women’s basketball won its 10th straight game in the rivalry with Ole Miss after claiming an 80-49 win on Sunday at Humphrey Coliseum.

The fourth largest crowd in the history of the program (10,337) watched the Bulldogs (19-1, 7-0 SEC) make it 31 straight home wins and 27 straight regular-season conference wins.

The Bulldogs have drawn 10,000 or more three times this season and seven times overall.

Tearia McCowan recorded her 16th double-double on the season with a season-high 33 points and 13 rebounds. Anriel Howard had her fourth double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. That pair has combined for 92 career double-doubles, the most by any active pair of teammates in the country.
Jordan Danberry had 12 points, seven rebounds and a season-high tying seven assists. Andra Espinoza-Hunter was also in double figures with 10 points.

McCowan has scored 20 or more points in 29 career games. It was her sixth career 30-plus-point game.

“I’m proud of my team today,” head coach Vic Schaefer said. “[McCowan] was really special today. Jazzmun Holmes played a great game. She was the focal point of everything we were doing on the defensive end. We give God the glory for 7-0 and we look forward to going back on the road.”

The Bulldogs took the lead for good in the late stages of the first quarter when a 9-0 run gave them a 15-8 lead. An old-fashioned 3-point play gave the Bulldogs an 18-10 lead after one quarter.

A basket by McCowan got the Bulldogs going during a game-changing second quarter. That score gave the Bulldogs a 25-12 advantage. A 16-3 run spanning 4:54 built a 24-point lead, up 41-17, with 1:50 left in the half. The Bulldogs held the Rebels to 12 points and 44.7 percent shooting in the quarter.

In the third quarter, the Bulldogs held a similar advantage but could not pull away. A three-pointer by Hunter as the quarter expired gave the home team a 62-37 advantage. She opened the fourth-quarter scoring with another basket from beyond the arc. State led by as many as 36 points with 4:05 to play when McCowan made a jumper for her 33rd point of the night.

MSU held a 43-27 rebounding advantage. The Bulldogs had 15 assists and 10 turnovers, while forcing 20 turnovers.

Ole Miss (8-13, 2-5 SEC) received 15 points from Crystal Allen and 13 points each from La’Karis Salter and Shannon Dozier.

MSU travels to LSU on Thursday. Tipoff from Baton Rouge, Louisiana is set for 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network+.