Strong Offensive Showing Fuels MSU To Senior Night Win

Thursday, February 27

Starkville

8:00 PM

Mississippi State

24-5,12-3SEC

Arkansas

21-7,9-6SEC

Arkansas

Mississippi St.

Strong Offensive Showing Fuels MSU To Senior Night Win

February 27, 2020 | Women's Basketball

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by Josh Lively, Assistant Director/Communications

STARKVILLE – A strong performance by Jordan Danberry on senior night fueled Mississippi State to a 92-83 victory over Arkansas at Humphrey Coliseum on Thursday.

"I thought it was a great senior night for Jordan," said head coach Vic Schaefer. "I appreciate her so much and what she's meant to me and our program for the last three and a half years. It has really been special. I thought tonight was special for her, and I'm happy we got the win for her. I thought we got better tonight. That was the challenge to our team this week. I thought we showed tremendous growth tonight offensively. We made some big shots and made some really good decisions with the ball. Jessika Carter was really special. This was a great bounce back for us after a disappointing day on Sunday [vs Alabama]. Great senior day, I'm really proud of our team for sending Jordan out the right way."

The graduate guard finished with 19 points on 7-of-11 shooting to go along with five assists in the high-scoring affair. Danberry had 13 points in the second half to lead all scorers and help State (24-5, 12-3 SEC) outscore Arkansas 53-32 in the second and third quarters combined. With the win, Mississippi State claimed its spot as the No. 2 seed for the SEC Tournament and clinched the double bye.

Carter continued her strong play, recording her third straight double-double with a team-high 21 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. Aliyah Matharu earned her first career start in the game and posted a career night. The freshman guard finished with a career-high-tying 18 points to go along with personal bests in rebounds (7), assists (4) and 3-pointers (4).

Andra Espinoza-Hunter had 13 points off the bench in 23 minutes of action, while Chloe Bibby had an all-around performance with 11 points, six boards, two assists, two blocks and a steal. As a team, MSU matched its season high in shooting percentage with a .578 clip.

Mississippi State owned the battle in the paint, outscoring Arkansas 56-34 down low and winning the battle on the glass 38-25. The offensive performance marked the third time in SEC play that the Bulldogs eclipsed the 90-point margin.

Alexis Tolefree led the Razorbacks (21-7, 9-6 SEC) in scoring with 30 points on the night to go along with eight rebounds and four steals. Arkansas shot 47 percent from the floor while knocking down 11 3-pointers, which was the most given up by State this year.

Both teams went back and forth in the first quarter, but it was Arkansas that held the early advantage, 26-24. Tolefree led the Razorbacks with a dominating quarter, dropping 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting. State hung around, though, behind 10 points from Matharu and eight points by Carter. The Bulldogs assisted on 10 of their 11 baskets in the period and shot 58 percent from the floor to keep up with Arkansas' hot start.

Mississippi State swung the momentum in its favor in the second stanza behind a 16-3 run during the middle of the period. Rickea Jackson had seven points in the quarter, while Carter added six more to bring her first half total to 14 points to go along with eight boards. State shot 65 percent from the field to take a 51-43 lead going into halftime.

The Bulldogs continued to have the hot hand on offense in the third period, shooting above 50 percent from the floor for the third quarter in a row keep the momentum in their favor. A 14-2 swing gave MSU a 77-58 lead going into the final frame.

Arkansas wouldn't go away quietly, though, opening the stanza with an 8-0 run in the first two minutes. Despite the Razorbacks also closing the period on a 9-0, State was able to hold off any chance of a comeback.

Up next, State closes out the regular season with a matchup against in-state rival Ole Miss in Oxford for a 1:40 p.m. tip. The game will be televised on SEC Network+ but will be highlighted on SEC Network as a part of the season-ending whiparound coverage of all 14 teams. The contest can also be streamed on the MSU Radio Network.

For more information on the Bulldogs, follow MSU women's basketball on Twitter, like them on Facebook and join them on Instagram by searching for "HailStateWBK."