No. 5 Bulldogs Open Women Of Troy Classic Friday Against SMU

Friday, December 16

Los Angeles, Calif.

10:00 PM

Mississippi State

SMU

No. 5 Bulldogs Open Women Of Troy Classic Friday Against SMU

December 15, 2016 | Women's Basketball

Game Notes (MSU)Game Notes (SMU)Live Video Live Audio

STARKVILLE, Miss. – A non-conference slate that has seen the No. 5 Mississippi State women's basketball travel over 17,000 miles comes to an end this weekend as the Bulldogs take part in the Women of Troy Classic in Los Angeles.

MSU opens play Friday, taking on SMU at 10 p.m. CT. The Bulldogs wrap the weekend Sunday afternoon against either Grambling or host USC.

Both of the Bulldogs' games will be streamed online on Pac-12.com. WKBB-FM 100.9 will have the radio broadcast, while a live audio stream can be found at hailstate.com/plus.

Mississippi State heads to L.A. 10-0 on the year after snagging a tough 55-48 road win at Little Rock on Tuesday. That victory gave Bulldog head coach Vic Schaefer his 100^th win with the program, the fastest MSU coach to reach the milestone.

Following the weekend in Los Angeles, the Bulldogs return home Tuesday to host their annual Christmas Hail State Hoops Luncheon at 11:30 a.m. and Alabama State that evening at 7 p.m.

SERIES BREAKDOWN VS. MUSTANGS

Mississippi State and SMU meet for the second time overall on Friday. The first meeting came last season in Puerto Rico, a game won by the Bulldogs 72-70 to claim the Puerto Rico Classic championship.
MSU got 18 points from Victoria Vivians, while Ketara Chapel and Chinwe Okorie added 13 and 10, respectively.

ABOUT SMU

SMU heads to Los Angeles 6-3 on the season. The last action for the Mustangs came Dec. 5, a 54-53 home upset of Texas A&M.
The Mustangs shoot 39.1% from the field, 26% from 3-point range and 65.5% from the free-throw line.
Alicia Froling paces SMU with 16.1 ppg and 10.8 rpg. McKenzie Adams also averages double-figure points with 11.3 ppg.
Froling had nine points, 10 rebounds in last year's meeting with the Bulldogs, while Adams tallied a game-high 21 points.

NEXT UP FOR THE DAWGS

The Bulldogs wrap their eight-game road trip Sunday, facing either Grambling or host USC in the Women of Troy Classic finale.
The Bulldogs return home to wrap the non-conference slate, hosting Alabama State Dec. 20 and Northwestern State Dec. 28.

BULLDOG BITES

Mississippi State opens the Women of Troy Classic against SMU 10-0 after claiming a 58-44 road win at Little Rock on Tuesday.
State's 10-straight wins is the fourth-most to open a season in school history.
The Bulldogs are the only undefeated team in the SEC and one of 11 nationally. State is one of only three teams in the Top 10 of the NCAA RPI (UConn and Utah) without a loss.
MSU's nine games away from home this season is the most in the country.
Tuesday's win gave Vic Schaefer his 100th as head coach of the Bulldogs, making him the fastest coach to reach 100 wins with the program.
Mississippi State has won 38 of its last 39 regular-season non-conference games going back to 2014-15. That tally includes 18-straight victories. The only loss came last season at Texas.
This weekend caps a non-conference slate that has included 17,190 miles of travel. This will be the fifth and sixth states MSU has played in during the first two months of the season.
Mississippi State remained No. 5 in both the Associated Press and USA Today polls. The No. 5 ranking is the highest in school history.
State ended Tuesday No. 6 in the NCAA RPI.
MSU has held four opponents below 50 points and nine below 60 this season. State is fourth in the SEC and 33rd nationally in scoring defense, allowing 55.2 ppg.
The Bulldogs average 78.4 ppg, third-most in the league and 32nd nationally.
State shot above 45% for the eighth time on the year. MSU shoots 47.6% for the year, second in the SEC and 19th in the nation.
The Bulldogs have won the turnover battle in all 10 games, ranking 16th in the country with a +7.6 turnover margin.
Victoria Vivians scored 17 points Tuesday, with 10 coming in the fourth quarter. She has double figures in four-straight games. She's averaging 14.7 ppg the last three games.
Blair Schaefer tied her career high with 12 points on Tuesday. She's averaging 8.3 ppg her last three outings, shooting 46.7% from the field, including 75% (6 of 8) from 3-point range.
Morgan William got back into double figures with 10 points at Little Rock. MSU is 37-4 when William scores 10 or more points.