Saturday, December 20
Salt Lake City, Utah
7:30 PM
Mississippi State
10-0
63
at
51
Utah
4-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi State | 37 | 26 | 63 |
| UT | 18 | 33 | 51 |
Lady Bulldogs Reach Double Digits In Wins; Remain Perfect With 63-51 Victory At Utah
December 20, 2008 | Women's Basketball
? Official Statistics
? Official Statistics (PDF)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Alexis Rack poured in 17 points and Mississippi State parlayed a strong first half into a 63-51 victory over Utah in women's basketball action Saturday night in the Huntsman Center.
The Lady Bulldogs ripped off a 13-0 run midway through the opening half. MSU continued the early dominance, building a 21-point lead before settling for a 37-18 lead at halftime. In the final half, the Lady Utes closed within four, at 55-51. MSU then forced back-to-back turnovers and eventually scored the game's final eight points.
With the victory, the Lady Bulldogs improved to 10-0. That start is one win shy of matching the school's best-ever start in ladies hoops. MSU won its first 11 games during the 1999-2000 season. Meanwhile, preseason Mountain West Conference favorite Utah fell to 4-6.
“I am extremely proud of the first half effort tonight,” MSU head coach Sharon Fanning said. “The first half tonight and the second half of the last two games represents the focus and intensity we need to play with every time we step on the court.
“Now, we have to find a way to package that effort. We have to be able to play that way for 40 minutes, if we want to beat Top 25 teams and eventually become a Top 25 team ourselves.”
Rack led the Lady Bulldogs with 17 points. Rack also had three steals with two of those coming in the final four minutes of play. Armelie Lumanu was also in double figures with 14 points. Chanel
Mokango and Mary Kathryn Govero each had a team-high eight rebounds. The Lady Bulldogs were credited with nine blocked shots, including five by Mokango.
Preseason MWC Player of the Year Morgan Warburton paced the Lady Utes with 23 points. Kalee Whipple added 12 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Only four Lady Utes scored in the contest.
MSU outscored Utah 17-0 off the bench.
The Lady Bulldogs converted 24 of 60 attempts from the field (60.0 percent), 7 of 22 shots from 3-point range (31.8 percent) and 8 of 13 shots from the foul line (61.5 percent). The Lady Utes converted 19 of 51 shots from the field (37.3 percent), 5 of 17 shots from 3-point range (29.4 percent) and 8 of 14 shots from the foul line (57.1 percent).
MSU had a 40-35 rebounding advantage. The Lady Bulldogs had 11 assists and 13 turnovers, while the Lady Utes had 14 assists and 18 turnovers.
The Lady Bulldogs now break for Christmas holidays. MSU will play Marshall at 11 a.m. CT on Dec. 29 in a first-round matchup at Terrapin Classic in College Park, Md. The following day, MSU will face either North Carolina-Asheville or the host squad from Maryland.
The Lady Bulldogs ripped off a 13-0 run midway through the opening half. MSU continued the early dominance, building a 21-point lead before settling for a 37-18 lead at halftime. In the final half, the Lady Utes closed within four, at 55-51. MSU then forced back-to-back turnovers and eventually scored the game's final eight points.
With the victory, the Lady Bulldogs improved to 10-0. That start is one win shy of matching the school's best-ever start in ladies hoops. MSU won its first 11 games during the 1999-2000 season. Meanwhile, preseason Mountain West Conference favorite Utah fell to 4-6.
“I am extremely proud of the first half effort tonight,” MSU head coach Sharon Fanning said. “The first half tonight and the second half of the last two games represents the focus and intensity we need to play with every time we step on the court.
“Now, we have to find a way to package that effort. We have to be able to play that way for 40 minutes, if we want to beat Top 25 teams and eventually become a Top 25 team ourselves.”
Rack led the Lady Bulldogs with 17 points. Rack also had three steals with two of those coming in the final four minutes of play. Armelie Lumanu was also in double figures with 14 points. Chanel
Mokango and Mary Kathryn Govero each had a team-high eight rebounds. The Lady Bulldogs were credited with nine blocked shots, including five by Mokango.
Preseason MWC Player of the Year Morgan Warburton paced the Lady Utes with 23 points. Kalee Whipple added 12 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double. Only four Lady Utes scored in the contest.
MSU outscored Utah 17-0 off the bench.
The Lady Bulldogs converted 24 of 60 attempts from the field (60.0 percent), 7 of 22 shots from 3-point range (31.8 percent) and 8 of 13 shots from the foul line (61.5 percent). The Lady Utes converted 19 of 51 shots from the field (37.3 percent), 5 of 17 shots from 3-point range (29.4 percent) and 8 of 14 shots from the foul line (57.1 percent).
MSU had a 40-35 rebounding advantage. The Lady Bulldogs had 11 assists and 13 turnovers, while the Lady Utes had 14 assists and 18 turnovers.
The Lady Bulldogs now break for Christmas holidays. MSU will play Marshall at 11 a.m. CT on Dec. 29 in a first-round matchup at Terrapin Classic in College Park, Md. The following day, MSU will face either North Carolina-Asheville or the host squad from Maryland.
Team Stats
MS
UT
FG%
.400
.373
3FG%
.318
.294
FT%
.615
.571
RB
40
35
TO
13
18
STL
11
5
Game Leaders
Pts
17
FGM
6
3FGM
2
FTM
3
Pts
14
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
1
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
1
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
G/F
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's BasketballG
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