Mississippi State Women Set to Face Florida in SEC Tournament Opener

Mississippi State’s women’s basketball team will begin postseason play in the SEC Tournament on Wednesday, aiming to avenge a regular-season loss to Florida. The game is set for 12:30 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on SEC Network, according to the team.

The Bulldogs enter the tournament with an 18-12 overall record and a 5-11 mark in SEC play. Florida holds a 17-14 record, also with a 5-11 conference record. The teams met during the regular season in Starkville, with Florida winning 71-56, but this will be their first SEC Tournament matchup since 2014. Florida leads the all-time series 29-28, and has won three straight against Mississippi State.

Mississippi State is currently listed as the last team in the NCAA Tournament according to ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme. The Bulldogs have a NET ranking of 39 and boast seven players averaging at least eight points per game. Freshman Madison Francis was named to the SEC All-Freshman and All-Defensive teams, becoming the first Bulldog to earn All-Defensive honors since 2019-20. She leads the nation with 84 blocks this season and set a program record with four blocks in the regular-season finale against LSU.

Favour Nwaedozi averages a double-double with 12.2 points and 10 rebounds per game, the most by a Bulldog since Teaira McCowan’s 31 double-doubles in 2018-19. Trayanna Crisp leads the team with a 37.4% three-point shooting percentage, and Kharyssa Richardson averages 11.6 points against SEC opponents. The Bulldogs are seeking to advance in the tournament and improve their NCAA Tournament seeding.

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