Bulldogs Prepare For Sweet 16 in Rose City

March 28, 2019

PORTLAND, Ore. (MSU Athletics) – For the fourth straight year, Mississippi State will play in the Sweet 16 when the top-seeded Bulldogs play Arizona State at 8 p.m. CT on Friday in the Moda Center. The game will air on ESPN2 with Dave Pasch, LaChina Robinson and Brooke Weisbrod on the call.

Fans can listen to the action on the MSU Radio Network and online via HailState.com/Plus and the TuneIn app.

The Bulldogs (32-2, 15-1 SEC) defeated Clemson, 85-61, in the second round to advance to the Sweet 16. Along the way, Teaira McCowan tied the MSU record for games played with her 148^th contest. She also broke State’s record with 14 field goals in a single NCAA Tournament game.

The No. 22/20 Sun Devils will be the seventh ranked team that the Bulldogs face this year. State boasts a 6-1 record in ranked matchups this season with the only loss coming to then-No. 7 Oregon, which is also playing in the Portland Regional this weekend.

MSU and Arizona State last met in the Cancun Challenge last season. The Bulldogs won that meeting 65-57. McCowan recorded a double-double in the game with 15 points and 14 rebounds.

The winner of Friday’s game will advance to the Portland Regional Final against the winner of the day’s second game between Oregon and South Dakota State. The Regional Final will be held on Sunday, March 31 at 1 p.m. CT and will air on ESPN2.

GAME INFORMATION
Opponent: Arizona State
Location: Portland, Oregon (Moda Center)

Time: Friday, 8 p.m. CT

Watch: ESPN2 (PxP – Dave Pasch; Analyst – LaChina Robinson; Sideline – Brooke Weisbrod)
Listen: MSU Radio Network and HailState.com/Plus (PxP – Jason Crowder; Analyst – Charlie Winfield)

SERIES HISTORY

Overall: Series tied 1-1

At MSU: N/A

At ASU: N/A

Neutral Sites: Series tied 1-1

Last Meeting: MSU, 65-57 (11/23/17 in Cancun, Mexico)

10 THINGS TO KNOW

MSU is playing in the Sweet 16 for the fourth consecutive year. Should the Dawgs advance to the Elite 8 for the third straight year, they will be just the 15th program to put together such a streak.
ESPNW National Coach of the Year Vic Schaefer has collected 193 wins in seven years at MSU. That is more than notable coaches such as Muffet McGraw (Notre Dame), Kim Mulkey (Baylor) and Geno Auriemma (UConn) put together in their first seven years at their current schools.
The Bulldogs enter the Portland Regional as the nation’s No. 2 scoring offense (86.6 ppg). MSU is 34th in the country allowing 57.5 ppg, but State leads the nation in scoring margin (+29.1).
Andra Espinoza-Hunter’s 41.9 percent three-point percentage currently sits 7th in MSU single-season history. She has scored 65.7 percent of her points (186) off three-point shots and has 10 games with 3 or more made threes this season.
The Dawgs held Missouri to just 2 offensive rebounds in the SEC semifinals, a season-low, and are 2nd nationally in rebounding margin (+13.2) entering the Regional. MSU has recorded a +10 or more advantage in 21 games this year.
MSU has trailed for a total of 107:01 out of 1,360 minutes this season. In the last 10 games (400 minutes), State has only trailed for a combined 34:47.
McCowan has scored double figures in 32 of 34 games this year. In 15 of those games she has scored 20+ points.
Jazzmun Holmes leads the nation in assist/turnover ratio (4.33) and has broken the Bulldogs’ single-season assist record with 182 dimes this year. Holmes boasts 456 career assists and is just one shy of moving into a tie for 3rd in school history.
The Dawgs have broken last year’s school-record of four 100-point efforts in a single year with 8 such games this season (last vs. Southern – March 22).
McCowan set an MSU NCAA Tournament record with 14 made field goals against Clemson in the second round.

LAST TIME OUT FOR MSU…

MSU advanced to the Sweet 16 for the 4th straight year with an 85-61 win against Clemson. Teaira McCowan tied the MSU record for career games along the way.
McCowan closed her Humphrey Coliseum career with an impressive 30 points, 11 rebounds and 6 blocks and was the first SEC player with 30 and 10 in the NCAA Tournament since the 2010 Elite Eight.
McCowan also broke State’s NCAA Tournament record with 14 field goals made.
Anriel Howard also posted a double-double (21 pts., 14 rbds.), and MSU is 11-0 when both Howard and McCowan record double-doubles in the same game.
Jazzmun Holmes broke MSU’s single-season assists record with her 7th of the night and No. 182 on the year.

GET TO KNOW THE OPPONENT…

No. 5-seed Arizona State (22-10, 10-7 Pac-12) will be the 8th ranked matchup MSU plays in as the Sun Devils check in at No. 22/20 in the polls.
ASU defeated No. 4-seed Miami (Fla.), 57-55, to advance to its first Sweet 16 appearance since 2015 and 5th under head coach Charli Turner Thorne.
The Sun Devils are no strangers to comeback bids as they scored the final 20 points of the game to erase an 18-point, 4th-quarter deficit against Utah this year.
In 2017, ASU led national champion South Carolina by as many as 11 in the 3rd quarter and held a lead in the final minute of play in the 2nd round.