Jan. 3, 2010
AUBURN - The Auburn women's basketball team (9-5, 0-1 SEC) fell, 73-58, to Mississippi State (10-4, 1-0 SEC) Sunday afternoon in Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum in the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams. A 10-1 run midway through the second half pushed the Bulldogs past the Tigers, who had earlier held a seven-point first half lead.
Senior KeKe Carrier led the Tigers with her fourth double-double of the season, providing 18 points and 10 rebounds. Junior Alli Smalley scored 14 followed by freshman Morgan Toles with 10, tying her career high.
Redshirt junior Jordan Greenleaf pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds and recorded a season-best four steals.
"I thought we had a chance to get one here at home to open up the conference," said Auburn head coach Nell Fortner. "It just kind of snuck away from us. Mississippi State, at around the 11:30 minute mark, put it in another gear. That's what teams do when they are senior-dominated and have a chance to win a conference championship. I thought they took their game to another level and we did not respond to it. That was the difference in the ballgame."
Both teams struggled from the field to open the game, combining to miss the first 14 field goals of the contest. The Tigers were able to maintain a small lead throughout the majority of the first half. A Toles jumper with 5:57 left on the clock provided Auburn with 24-17 lead, forcing the Bulldogs to call for a 30-second timeout.
Mississippi State then capitalized on a four-point play at the 4:20 mark after Smalley crashed into State's leading scorer, Mary Kathryn Govero, outside the arc. Govero's three pointer and subsequent free throw were both good, reducing the Auburn lead to 26-25.
Auburn had a chance to rebuild its lead in the closing minutes but was unable to capitalize on a strong defensive run that held Mississippi State to just two points over the next 3:27. The Tigers were only able to manage an underhanded lay-up from Smalley and a pair of free throws from Greenleaf.
The Bulldogs scored the final four points of the half, resulting in a 30-29 Auburn lead at intermission.
Mississippi State quickly took the lead in the second half as Govero drained five points in the opening 2:30. Toles responded for the Tigers, connecting on a short-range jumper to retake the lead. A back-and-forth battle ensued as the lead was exchanged nine times before the 11:37 mark.
From that point on, the Tigers would only connect on 5-of-13 attempts from the field. Mississippi State's cold spell would end as the Bulldogs connected on 11-of-16 to pull away for the win. MSU jumped to a quick, 55-46, lead that included five from senior Armelie Lumanu.
"I can't really put my finger on what happened," said Smalley. "We got soft on offense and defense. They were knocking down everything they put up. We've still got to get out to those shooters. That's how the game got away from us. We were turning the ball over."
Blanche Alverson connected for a 3-pointer at the eight-minute mark, ending a drought of 33 consecutively missed 3-point attempts for the Tigers.
Mississippi State senior Alexis Rack then dropped a three of her own to take a nine-point Mississippi State advantage. Auburn was unable to get closer than six points to the Bulldogs for the remainder of the contest.
Auburn outrebounded Mississippi State 47-31, including 25-13 on the offensive glass. But, Auburn was only able to convert those into 18 second-chance points while MSU tallied 16.
"We found a way to win," said Mississippi State head coach Sharon Fannin-Otis. "I just kept emphasizing good shots. At halftime, rebounding was a real concern. It showed that Auburn hustled and beat us to shots. To win a game with this rebounding difference in big."
Auburn was 23-of-65 from the field, 2-of-14 from three-point land and 10-of-15 from the line. Mississippi State connected on 24-of-58 from the field, 7-of-26 from 3-point-range and 18-of-21 from the line. In all, four Bulldogs scored in double digits, led by Govero with 22 points. Armelie Lumanu led State in rebounding with 10.
Auburn will play at Florida (8-6, 1-0 SEC) at 6 p.m. CT, Thursday at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center. The Gators defeated Arkansas, 59-53, in Fayetteville, Ark., Sunday. The matchup between the Tigers and Gators will air on CSS, marking Auburn's first televised game of the season.