STARKVILLE — Dominique Dillingham recorded her first double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds, and Jazzmun Holmes added 12 points in her debut as the No. 11 Mississippi State women’s basketball team defeated Samford 68-47 Friday night at Humphrey Coliseum.
MSU won its 12th-straight season opener and 30th-consecutive home opener in front of a crowd of 6,463, the second-largest crowd in program history. Going back to last season, MSU has averaged nearly 4,000 per game.
The Bulldogs also claimed their 18th win in their last 19 home games going back to last season.
“Hats off to Samford. They played very poised, especially in the second half. They are well-coached and are always in the top three in their league,” MSU coach Vic Schaefer said. “We are extremely young right now. (Jazzmun Holmes) played her heart out tonight. I got on her a little, and she responded how you’d like to see a pro respond. Dominique was solid. She didn’t shoot it great, but she took 11 shots, which I like, and 2 of 3 from 3-point range is not a bad number, but she got 11 rebounds for a double-double. I’m glad she’s on my team. We are feeling fortunate to get out of there with a W.”
Schaefer’s squad jumped out to the quick lead to open the contest, getting an old-fashioned 3-point play for the 3-0 lead. Samford (0-1), however, answered with an 11-1 run to take a seven-point advantage.
MSU used an 8-0 run to take a 16-12 lead after one quarter. The Bulldogs turned up the defensive intensity and put together an 18-2 run to take a 34-14 halftime lead. Holmes was instrumental in the run, scoring six of the team’s points.
MSU pushed the lead to 37-16 two minutes into the third period, but Samford responded with an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to 37-27. After seeing the advantage dwindle to nine on a 3-pointer from Amara Mayers with 2 minutes, 6 seconds left in the quarter, Dillingham answered with a 3-pointer and Breanna Richardson added a layup to push the advantage to 44-30 with 1:25 left.
“I was just trying to give us a spark,” Dillingham said. “We were missing a lot, so I was just trying to get as many rebounds as I could.”
Leading 46-34 entering the fourth quarter, sophomore Preseason All-Southeastern Conference selection Victoria Vivians, who was limited to three first-half minutes with foul trouble, responded with six of her eight points.
Samford trimmed the lead to 54-43 with 5:12 left, but MSU used a 10-0 run to extend the lead to 64-43 with 2:27 left.
MSU shot 32.5 percent (25 of 77) from the field and 2 of 20 (10 percent) from 3-point range. The Bulldogs scored 34 points off 28 turnovers.
All 11 Bulldogs who logged minutes scored points. Richardson, Morgan William, Ketara Chapel, and Chinwe Okorie added six points each. Blair Schaefer added five and Teaira McCowan, Sherise Williams, and LaKaris Salter added two points.
Brittany Stevens paced Samford with 13 points, while Taylor Reece and Mayers added nine points each.
MSU will play host to Grambling at 1 p.m. Saturday at Humphrey Coliseum.
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