Unfazed by foul trouble, the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs withstood a late Texas run to upset the sixth-seeded Lady Longhorns 71-63 in the first round of the Women’s NCAA Tournament.
The teams traded baskets early in the first half, with the Lady Longhorns’ first (and only) lead of the game coming at 5:44 when junior guard Erika Arriaran’s free throw game them a 19-18 lead. The Lady Bulldogs followed with an 11-0 run and closed out the first half ahead 34-24.
The Lady Bulldogs found themselves in foul trouble quickly in the second half, with junior point guard Alexis Rack picking up her third foul with 17:51 to go and her fourth with 15:31 to go. It got worse when junior guard Armelie Lumanu picked up her fourth foul with 13:32 remaining.
Despite both starting guards having four fouls, the Lady Bulldogs extended their lead to 51-39 with 8:03 to go. The Lady Longhorns would not go down quietly and made a run of their own, tying it at 59 with freshman guard Ashleigh Fontenette’s jumper with 2:17 to go.
From there, the Lady Bulldogs stopped the Lady Longhorn offense in its tracks and hit their final 10 free throw attempts to take the win.
The Lady Bulldogs were led by Rack, who, despite spending much of the second half on the bench with four fouls, scored 20 points and was 13-of-13 from the free throw line.
Lumanu registered a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and junior forward Chanel Mokango added 15 points and five rebounds. Sophomore guard Mary Kathryn Govero added 11 points off the bench. As a team, the Lady Bulldogs hit 21 of 22 free throws on the day and held Texas to a field goal percentage of only 30.9%.
Senior forward Earnesia Williams scored 17 points for the Lady Longhorns, while junior guard Brittainey Raven added 15 and sophomore guard Kathleen Nash had 11. The Lady Longhorns finished their season with a 21-12 record.
The win brings the Lady Bulldogs to a 23-9 record. They will face the winner of the Ohio State-Sacred Heart game Monday evening in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Check back Monday during the game for a live chat with Reflector staff members.