No. 9 Bulldogs Open Home Slate With Win Against No. 8 Texas

Sunday, November 20

Starkville

5:00 PM

Mississippi State

4-0

#8 Texas

1-2

Texas

Mississippi State

Morgan William paced MSU with 23 points, 13 from the free-throw line, in Sunday's upset of the No. 8 Longhorns.

No. 9 Bulldogs Open Home Slate With Win Against No. 8 Texas

November 20, 2016 | Women's Basketball

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STARKVILLE, Miss. – Playing before the second largest crowd in Mississippi State women's basketball history, the No. 9 Bulldogs tuned in a solid performance in their home opener, knocking off No. 8 Texas 79-68 before a Humphrey Coliseum crowd of 7,764 and a national television audience Sunday afternoon.

Playing a road-heavy schedule to prepare for postseason play, the Bulldogs played the first of three non-conference games at home. The victory – MSU's first over a ranked opponent this season – moved the Bulldogs to 4-0.

State won its 31^st-straight home opener and claimed its first win against a Top 10 non-conference opponent since the 2010 squad defeated No. 8 Ohio State in the NCAA Tournament.

The last time the Bulldogs won at home against a non-SEC team ranked in the Top 10 was a 74-72 decision against No. 2 Louisiana Tech in the 1999-00 campaign.

"It was a heck of a basketball game," MSU head coach Vic Schaefer said. "We appreciate Texas playing this series home-and-home. This was a great opportunity and a great test for us. I know they feel the same way. It was a great opportunity for us to showcase Mississippi State women's basketball and what that entails.

"That felt like an NCAA Tournament game. It was a knock-down drag-out out there. The kids really competed today. I am proud that we could do this today in front of the country. Everybody who played, played a really big part in this game."

Morgan William led the way with 23 points, including 13 of 14 at the free-throw line. Victoria Vivians added 19 points and Dominique Dillingham had 10 points. Chinwe Okorie had a team-high seven rebounds.

The Bulldogs shot 47.4 percent from the floor and only committed 13 turnovers. On the defensive end, MSU's full-court pressure and depth proved key as Texas committed 24 turnovers.

"We got some really good play off the bench," Schaefer said. "Jazzmun (Holmes) comes in and gets two or three steals. Blair (Schaefer) gave us some good minutes. Roshunda (Johnson) was just fabulous off the bench."

The game's separation took place in the second quarter. After the teams battled to seven ties in the first quarter, which ended in a 16-16 tie, the contest turned in the Bulldogs' direction in the second quarter. Texas hit 1-of-9 shots from the field that quarter.

"We were just pressuring the ball," Vivians said. "We had 15 turnovers at the half. Everybody can score on this team, so we just have to keep doing things well on defense. Even when we didn't get turnovers, we altered some shots."

MSU outscored Texas 26-9 to build a 42-25 halftime lead. A 9-0 run was capped by a 3-pointer from Johnson that pushed the lead to 28-18. A 6-0 run later pushed the lead to 14 with 2:31 left before halftime.

In the third quarter, Texas closed within eight points twice. However, the defensive pressure and roaring crowd of the Bulldogs helped push the home team back out to a comfortable lead.

A 3-pointer by Vivians pushed the lead to 59-44 in the final minute of the third quarter.

The lead was pushed back to 17 early in the fourth quarter on a basket by William. The Bulldogs held their own at the foul line against the heavy full-court pressure of the Longhorns to pull out the win.

For the contest, the Bulldogs hit 27 of 56 shots from the field (47.4 percent), 2 of 11 shots from 3-point range (18.2) and 23 of 28 shots from the foul line (82.1 percent). The Longhorns hit 27 of 56 shots from the field (48.2 percent), 2 of 12 shots from 3-point range (16.7 percent) and 12 of 16 shots from the foul line (75.0 percent).

Texas held a 36-26 rebounding advantage. MSU had eight assists and 13 turnovers, while Texas had 13 assists and 24 turnovers.

Texas placed three players in double figures. Brooke McCarty had 19 points, while Ariel Atkins had 18 points and Brianna Taylor had 12 points. Kelsey Lang and Taylor each had a team-high eight rebounds.