Mississippi State
28-7
#16 Michigan State
25-9
Oh, How SWEET It Is For The Bulldogs With Win
March 20, 2016 | Women's Basketball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – Mississippi State sent a huge thank you note to its fans with a stirring 74-72 win over Michigan State in a second-round game of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament Sunday afternoon at Humphrey Coliseum.
With a Sweet 16 berth in the Bridgeport Regional on the line, the Bulldogs and Spartans delivered one of the more entertaining games of the season before a coliseum crowd of 7,094, the fourth-largest in program history. Mississippi State let a 13-point lead slip away, thanks in part to a 20-0 Michigan State run. The Bulldogs then bowed their necks and made big play after big play to battle back from the seven-point deficit.
Breanna Richardson hit the go-ahead 3-point shot with 34 seconds left in regulation to give MSU a 72-69 lead. Morgan William then hit two free throws for a 74-70 lead. Michigan State hit two free throws to pull within two and had one more possession but Sherise Williams had the critical blocked shot and William the critical rebound to preserve the victory.
“I couldn't be prouder today,” MSU head coach Vic Schaefer said. “What a heck of a basketball game against an unbelievable opponent in Michigan State. They are a tremendous basketball team. They are well-coached and resilient. I say all that, and our kids were just a little bit more. I couldn't be prouder of the toughness our kids showed today.”
Mississippi State (28-7) set a new school record for victories in a season. The Bulldogs advance to the Sweet 16 for the second time in program history and first time since 2010. Mississippi State will play the winner of Monday's contest between Connecticut and Duquesne in the third round of the tournament Saturday in Bridgeport, Connecticut.
The contest will be televised nationally by ESPN with a tip time soon to be finalized by the NCAA.
Mississippi State eased into a 19-14 lead late in a nip-and-tuck first quarter. The Spartans then got a 3-point basket from Aerial Powers to close the quarter. After Michigan State pulled even, Mississippi State again built a 23-19 lead on a Morgan William 3-pointer.
The Bulldogs then built a six-point lead at 34-28 on a Teaira McCowan old-fashioned 3-point play. The lead was stretched to seven at 38-31 on a Victoria Vivians jumper.
Mississippi State led 40-34 at halftime.
Vivians continued her hot hand early in the third quarter. Her trey sent the Bulldogs to a 51-38 advantage with 5:55 left in the third quarter. From there, Michigan State pieced together a 20-0 run ending the third quarter and the fourth quarter.
The Bulldogs actually went better than nine minutes without scoring.
Michigan State grabbed a 58-51 lead with 7:44 left to play, but the Bulldogs then started climbing back with two free throws and a trey by Vivians. An 8-0 run sent the Bulldogs into the lead at 61-60 after a layup by Richardson.
From there, the teams were set for a frantic finish.
Michigan State held a brief 65-64 lead. The teams were then tied at 69.
Richardson broke that tie on her third 3-pointer of the season with 34 seconds left in regulation. William then hit two free throws to run the lead to 74-70, but Michigan State hit two free throws to cut the deficit in half. The Spartans then had one more chance, but Williams managed to block Jasmine Hines' shot and William claimed the game-clinching rebound.
“There was no hesitation (on the shot),” Richardson said. “We had been running the cutting game and it was basically the rotation. I was ready for Morgan and thought, 'throw it back, please throw it back.' When she finally did I shot it, and when I made it was like, 'Whoa'.”
Vivians led the Bulldogs with 24 points, her third time with 20-plus points in the last four games. The Carthage, Mississippi, native averaged 21.5 ppg in the opening two rounds and moved into ninth place in MSU single-season history with 610 points.
William added 14 points in the victory, while Richardson added 12 points.
For the contest, Mississippi State hit 23 of 60 shots from the field (38.3 percent), 7 of 21 shots from 3-point range (33.3 percent) and 21 of 28 shots from the foul line (75.0 percent). Michigan State hit 21 of 47 shots from the field (44.7 percent), 6 of 11 shots from 3-point range (54.5 percent) and 24 of 31 shots from the foul line (77.4 percent).
Mississippi State held a 37-33 rebounding advantage. The Bulldogs had 12 assists and 16 turnovers, while the Spartans had 11 assists and 21 turnovers.
Michigan State placed four players in double figures. Branndais Agee had 21 points, while Tori Jankoska had 17 points, Jasmine Hines had 15 points and Aerial Powers had 14 points.
Mississippi State wrapped up its year in Humphrey Coliseum 16-2, giving the Bulldogs a 33-3 home mark the last two seasons. In those 18 games at the Hump, Mississippi State played in front of a school-record 92,914 fans.
