The Mississippi State University Lady Bulldog basketball team beat the Australian Institute of Sport 72-59 Thursday night in their final exhibition game of the season. Led by freshman standout Tan White, who led all scorers with 22 points on the night, the Lady Bulldogs put away AIS despite only shooting 37 percent from the field.
“It was ugly, but we found a way to win,” MSU head coach Sharon Fanning said after the game. “We have to improve and get better defensively.”
The Lady Bulldogs got quality minutes off the bench from sophomore Seneca Anderson, who finished with 4 points in 14 minutes of work, and also from freshmen Rebecca Kates and Ebonie Ferguson, who combined for 8 points in 20 and 21 minutes respectively.
“Rebecca played very well defensively,” Fanning said of the 6-foot-1-inch Cashion, Okla., freshman.
Bulldog standout LaToya Thomas played 27 minutes Thursday night and racked up a double-double, scored 10 points and pulled down 10 boards. MSU starters Jennifer Fambrough, Renea Jones and Keisha Stringfellow all combined for 25 points and 15 rebounds on the night.
Leading AIS on the night in scoring was Shelly Hammonds and Carly Wilson who netted 14 points apiece against the smaller Lady Bulldog team.
State only shot 25 percent from behind the 3-point line, hitting five of 20, while AIS was one of three from behind the arc.
The Lady Bulldogs will begin regular season play on Friday against Alabama A&M. Tip off at Humphrey Coliseum is set for 7 p.m. The Bulldogs will play their first two regular season contests in the Hump before traveling to Ames, Iowa to meet Maryland and either Iowa State or DePaul.