Lady Bulldogs Fall To Fifth-Ranked Tennessee, 78-56
Official Game Statistics (PDF)
White tallies four steals to become SEC all-Time Career Steals leader
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The Mississippi State University women's basketball (16-10, 5-8 SEC) kept the game close throughout the first half but was unable to find a way to defeat the fifth-ranked University of Tennessee Lady Vols (22-4, 12-1 SEC) on Thursday night at Thompson -Boling Arena, falling 78-56. MSU senior guard Tan White tallied four steals on the evening to take over first place on the SEC all-Time Career Steals List, surpassing former South Carolina player Jocelyn Penn. White's career total is now 361 steals in 118 games.
"It was a very physical game at the beginning," said MSU Head Coach Sharon Fanning. "Down the stretch, we lost our composure. We didn't have poise. You have to have poise under pressure. The biggest statistic in my mind is the offensive boards. With Mamie out, that hurt. We knew the matchup would be a little tougher. With this lineup, we still did okay. They are a big ball club and very strong. They just got momentum down the stretch. We were a little passive."
Junior guard Doceide Warren scored the game's opening basket before Tennessee tied the game on the next possession. The Lady Vols went up by seven at 9-2 with 17:17 remaining in the period. White's first goal of the contest came at 17:07 and pulled the Lady Bulldogs to within five. Tennessee extended its first half lead to seven on a Brittany Jackson three-pointer with 14:03 left in the half. The Lady Bulldogs fought back, using a three-pointer from senior forward Rebecca Kates and two free throws from junior guard/forward Blessing Chekwa to cut the UT lead to two at the 12:18 mark. The Lady Vols answered, this time expanding the lead out to nine and keeping the lead to at least six. Following a media timeout at the 7:45 mark, MSU trimmed the Tennessee advantage to one at the 4:46 mark. However, the Lady Vols were too strong in the half's closing minutes as they took a 32-25 lead into the locker room at the intermission.
White's three at the beginning of the second half brought MSU to within four, but Shyra Ely kept Tennessee ahead on three straight layups. With an 11-point advantage at the 17:10 mark of the period, White, senior guard Tiania Burns, and Warren made consecutive baskets to pull MSU to as close as five. After UT went back up by seven, State once again trimmed the lead down, this time on layups from White and Chekwa. With 13:52 left to play, MSU trailed 43-40. Tennessee held a five to seven-point lead heading into the final 10 minutes of the contest. Coming out of a timeout at the 8:12 mark, UT jumped back out by as much as 11. The sway of the game changed completely with an alternate possession call with 6:29 left in the game. From there, the Lady Vols extended their lead to 20 with 3:30 left to play. MSU was unable to answer the scoring explosion and fell by 22 at 78-56.
Tennessee scored 23 of its 78 points off of second-chance opportunities, while MSU had only eight second-chance points. Twenty-nine Lady Vol points were scored off of 23 Lady Bulldog turnovers.
White led MSU with 19 points, while Chekwa brought down six rebounds on the night. State played the entire contest without the aid of junior forward Mamie McKinney, who sat out with a subluxed patella that had been re-injured in Wednesday's practice.
"It's good to be recognized for something other than points especially on defense," said White regarding her career steal performance. "I want people to look at me as a defensive player, as well as an offensive player."
Tennessee's Ely led all scorers with 27 points and posted 12 rebounds. Tye'sha Fluker contributed 13 for the Lady Vols, while Shanna Zolman netted 12.
MSU returns home for their final contest of the 2004-05 regular season on Sunday afternoon when the Lady Bulldogs host Auburn at 3 p.m. CT in Humphrey Coliseum.
GAME NOTES
- White has scored in double digits in 37 consecutive games spanning from the end of the 2003-04 season. With her 19 field goal attempts on the evening, White also takes over that MSU career category.
- Warren is now six points shy of 500 career points.
- Tennessee leads the series 24-0. The Lady Bulldogs are 0-10 in Knoxville. Six of the last nine meetings have been decided by single digits.
- State is 1-5 this season vs. top-25 ranked teams.