Mississippi State head coach Sharon Fanning walked into Sunday’s post-game press conference with a noted look of consternation after Mississippi State’s narrow 60-56 loss to the No. 24 Georgia Lady Bulldogs.On Thursday night, she watched her team battle its way from a 28-point first-half deficit to a three-point deficit late in the second half only to ultimately fall in a 73-65 loss to the Ole Miss Lady Rebels.
In Sunday’s game, Mississippi State trailed by two points with 20.3 seconds left on the clock. The Lady Bulldogs made their way to their offensive end of the court, and junior guard Marneshia Richard took a potential game-tying jump shot as time dwindled near the completion of the game.
Senior forward Imesia Jackson fought hard for the rebound but turned her ankle while coming down with it and couldn’t get rid of the ball before being called for a traveling violation with 3.6 ticks remaining. Georgia guard Ashley Houts then sank two free throws to end Mississippi State’s bid to win the game.
“The biggest point of emphasis for our team is that in the last four ballgames, we have competed in a way where you can win ballgames,” Fanning said. “There haven’t been 40 minutes in each game, but the first part is to put yourself in a position to win.”
And the Lady Bulldogs had their opportunities to win the game against their Georgia opponents of the same name. The contest featured 10 lead changes and 14 ties, and the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs looked dominant during some moments of the game.
But Richard, who scored a team-high 15 points, said they didn’t make the right plays to win the game.
“That was a hard-fought game,” Richard said. “We tried to make a run at the end, but they’re a good team and were able to keep us off with their big plays at the end.”
Mississippi State faced an especially tough task when trying to score points in the paint. Georgia featured its 6-foot-3 leading scorer Tasha Humphrey, who scored 14 points and gathered 11 rebounds in the game, and the 6-foot-5 center Angel Robinson.
Mississippi State junior forward Robin Porter battled with those players in the post and said she wasn’t intimidated, but she wished she could go back and do some things differently.
“They’re big, but we should’ve just played harder and got in better position to contest their shots,” said Porter, who fouled out late in the game but finished with eight points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes.
Sunday’s loss came on the heels of a heart-wrenching setback the squad suffered at the hands of the Ole Miss Lady Rebels Thursday night at the Tad Smith Coliseum.
Ole Miss staked claim to a slim 15-13 lead within the opening moments of the game, and that lead grew as the half wore on. The Lady Bulldogs went 10 minutes and 12 seconds with offensive futility, scoring only one field goal during that stretch.
Meanwhile, Ole Miss capitalized on Mississippi State miscues by reeling off a 27-2 run and maintaining a hefty 51-24 lead at halftime.
The Lady Bulldogs responded in a mighty way during the second half.
What was once a 28-point Ole Miss lead late in the first frame diminished to only a three-point advantage with three minutes and 37 seconds remaining in the contest.
But the Lady Rebels answered with a late push of their own to preserve their lead.
“I was pleased with the way we came back and the effort that we had,” Fanning said. “We were in a position where we could win a ballgame.