LAFAYETTE, La. — The No. 21 Mississippi State women’s basketball team made it official Wednesday in getting off to the best start in program history.
Freshman Morgan William had 21 points, while classmate Victoria Vivians had her third double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds to lead MSU to a 66-51 victory against Louisiana-Lafayette.
Playing a matinee in front of thousands of area elementary kids in the Cajundome, the Bulldogs used a 44-17 surge in the final 24 minutes to win their school-record 12th-straight game to start the season. The winning streak matches the 2004-05 team’s 12-game streak.
MSU had previously started two other seasons with 11 straight wins.
“Take your hat off to Louisiana,” MSU coach Vic Schaefer said. “They came out well prepared. They attacked us and had us on our heels for the first 16 minutes of the game. We went to a 2-3 zone, which we had not practiced one minute since I came to Mississippi State.
“It was heck of a game. We didn’t play well at times.”
MSU rallied from a 12-point deficit in the opening half. The Bulldogs scored the final 10 points of the first half and opened the second half with a 14-3 run to take control.
William, who had six of MSU’s final 10 points to close the first half, had her second 20-point outing of the season.
Martha Alwal had 14 points and nine rebounds. She also blocked four shots, placing her one swat shy of eighth place in Southeastern Conference career history.
“It was our third game in four days, but that is not an excuse because we play a lot of kids,” Schaefer said. “Part of our problem is we have not practiced a lot of late, due to finals and so many games. I am proud of my kids because we adjusted. We did a pretty good job on defense in something we haven’t practiced.”
After early atypical struggles on the defensive end this season, the Bulldogs have held four of their last five opponents to 51 or fewer points.
Still, the Cajuns started strong with the game’s first five points and built a 13-5 lead. Vivians hit a couple of long shots to keep the Bulldogs within striking range early. The Bulldogs were back within 21-16 on a three-point play by Alwal.
The Cajuns were held without a field goal in the final 4 minutes, 41 seconds of the first half. Back-to-back baskets by William started the half-ending 10-0 run that cut the halftime deficit to two.
After Ketara Chapel opened the second half with a game-tying jumper, the Bulldogs took their first lead, 37-34, on 3-pointer by Vivians with 18:47 left. By then, the Bulldogs were on lock down on defense and the offense was heating up.
An 8-0 run, capped by another 3-pointer by Vivians, stretched the lead to 46-37. ULL went almost six minutes without scoring during the stretch.
ULL closed within 46-40, but MSU responded with the game’s next six points to move back out of danger.
MSU was 23 of 46 from the field (50.0 percent), 2 of 9 from 3-point range (22.2), and 18 of 28 from the free-throw line (64.3). ULL was 18 of 65 from the field (27.7), 3 of 22 from 3-point range (13.6), and 12 of 16 from the free-throw line (75.0).
MSU held a 47-33 rebounding advantage. The Bulldogs had seven assists and 24 turnovers, while the Cajuns had seven assists and 13 turnovers.
ULL (6-1) received 17 points from Keke Veal, 13 points from Jaylyn Gordon, and 10 points from Kia Wilridge.
MSU will play Illinois-Chicago at 9:30 p.m. Saturday in the Las Vegas Holiday Hoops Classic. It will play Miami University at 6 p.m. Sunday.
MSU will play host to Arkansas-Pine Bluff at 7 p.m. Dec. 29.
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