Bulldogs split the season series with Ole Miss
Credit: MSU Athletics
By Jack Byers, Student Assistant
Mississippi State women’s basketball fell in overtime, 75-71, at Ole Miss inside The Sandy and John Black Pavilion on Sunday.
Mississippi State now stands at 20-7 overall and 7-5 in SEC play. Mississippi State split the season series with Ole Miss after it won the first matchup in Starkville last month, 69-57.
Senior guard Jerkaila Jordan finished with a team-high 18 points and six rebounds in 40 minutes, while graduate student forward Erynn Barnum turned in 16 points and six rebounds in 34 minutes. Senior guard Darrione Rogers added 13 points behind a trio of makes from behind the arc in 34 minutes.
Ole Miss earned its largest lead of the contest at 20-8 in the first quarter before Mississippi State started to chip away at its deficit to make the score 22-18 at the conclusion of the initial 10 minutes.
Trailing by six at halftime, Mississippi State outscored Ole Miss 20-11 in the third quarter and took its first lead at the 1:41 mark after back-to-back threes by Rogers and a bucket inside by Barnum, which was assisted by Rogers.
Barnum helped extend the Mississippi State lead to 59-51 at the 6:38 mark of the fourth quarter, scoring five unanswered points with a layup and three free throws, while graduate student center Jessika Carter maintained that eight point lead with a jump shot from the top of the key.
Carter, who neared a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds, fouled out with 1:28 left to play in regulation. Ole Miss scored the final four points in regulation after Carter’s departure and forced overtime with three seconds left.
Barnum scored the first two baskets of the extra period, but Ole Miss responded with a 9-0 run to take the lead for the final time. Jordan nailed a triple from the top of the key to cut it to a one-possession contest at 72-70, but the Rebels knocked down their free throws in the final 30 seconds to reach the eventual final.
Mississippi State will be back in action on Thursday, Feb. 22 when it hosts Kentucky inside Humphrey Coliseum. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
