Lady Bulldogs Aim For
May 25, 2016 | Women's Basketball
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LUBBOCK, Texas -- The Mississippi State women's basketball team looks to advance to the "Sweet 16" for the first time in school history when they take on No. 17 Texas Tech Sunday night in the second round of the NCAA West Regional in Lubbock, Texas.
The 12th-seeded Lady Bulldogs (19-11) advanced to the 7:30 p.m. second-round matchup with a 65-59 win over Boston College. Texas Tech (19-11) knocked off Stephen F. Austin 84-63 late Friday night in front of the home crowd in United Spirit Center.
State had a back-and-forth struggle with Boston College, but a late 7-0 MSU run that was backed by five LaToya Thomas points preserved the win for State and advanced them to Sunday's second round.
Sunday's meeting will be the first between the Lady Bulldogs and the Lady Raiders. This year's NCAA showing is the third in school history for MSU, while the Texas Tech is making its 15th appearance and 13th straight in the tournament. The Lady Raiders have defended their home floor well in NCAA Tournament action, going 16-1 in first- and second-round games played in Lubbock.
The Lady Bulldogs' two leading scorers, Thomas and freshman Tan White, were the only two MSU players in double figures Friday night. Thomas picked up her 15th double-double this season as she poured in 27 points to go along with 15 rebounds. White added 15 points in her first NCAA Tournament action.
Thomas, an Associated Press all-American, enters Sunday's showdown averaging a team-leading 24.9 points per game average and a 93-game double-digit scoring streak. She also leads the squad in rebounds, averaging 9.8 boards a game.
White's 30th double-figure scoring performance bumped her average to 18.9 ppg. The all-SEC selection is also pulling in a team second-best 7.3 rpg while leading the team in assists (132) and steals (87). Lone senior Jennifer Fambrough is the only other Lady Bulldog averaging double figures in scoring this season with 12.1 points per contest.
Tech's Jia Perkins leads three players scoring in double figures this season, averaging 16.3 points per outing. Perkins put in 19 points in Friday night's win over Stephen F. Austin. Amber Tarr follows behind, averaging 11.6 points per contest, while Natalie Ritchie ranks third with 11.0 points per game after chipping in 11 points in the opening round.
Jolee Ayers hit on five of her eight field goal attempts to finish Friday night's game with 12 points. Averaging 9.2 ppg, Ayers leads the team in rebounding with 6.7 boards per game.
Sunday's game is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. CST tip time and can be heard on 107.9 WFCA with Bart Gregory calling the action. The match up will be broadcast as part of ESPN's Fullcourt package through Direct TV.
