? 2009 NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Interactive Bracket | Printable Version
? ESPN2 coverage map for MSU-Texas
? ESPN 360 (live video streaming)
? Live stats
? Mississippi State Game Notes | Texas Game Notes
COLUMBUS, OHIO. - The 11th-seeded Mississippi State women's basketball team will open play in its fifth NCAA Tournament and first in five years when they take on sixth-seeded Texas in a first-round matchup Saturday at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The Lady Bulldogs and Longhorns will tip off at 11 a.m. CT and coverage will be shown live on ESPN2. The game will be radio broadcast locally in the Starkville area on WFCA-FM 107.9.
State, (22-9, 8-6 SEC) enters Saturday's contest having won three of its last four games. The Lady Bulldog's 22 wins this season are the third most in school history as they are two shy of tying the record. State continues to be paced in scoring by junior guard Alexis Rack. The Franklin, La., native is averaging 14.6 points a contest and ranks fifth in the Southeastern Conference in assists a game with 4.3. Junior Armelie Lumanu is scoring 10.8 points a game and is averaging 5.7 points an outing.
Texas enters Saturday's game with a 21-11 overall record. The Longhorns compiled an 8-8 mark in Big 12 play this season and reached the second round of the Big 12 conference tournament before a loss to Iowa State. UT is led by second-year head coach Gail Goestenkors. The Longhorns are led by junior guard Brittainey Raven who is averaging 13.3 points a game. Sophomore guard Kathleen Nash is scoring 11.4 points a game and leads Texas in rebounding, pulling down 6.7.
Saturday's meeting will be the first in women's basketball between Mississippi State and Texas. The Lady Bulldogs have only faced one Big 12 opponent in Tournament play which was a loss at Texas Tech in the 2001-02 Tournament.
The winner of the MSU and Texas game will meet the winner of third-seeded Ohio State and 14th-seeded Sacred Heart Monday evening in the second round.
