The Bulldogs continue to roll.
After a home loss to West Virginia Dec. 8, the Mississippi State women’s basketball team earned its sixth-straight victory with a 73-66 win over Georgia Sunday in Athens.
“Not our best day but give Georgia a ton of credit,” MSU coach Vic Schaefer said in a news release. “My young team, we grew up a little bit today, I hope. I don’t know how many games I have ever won in my career where in the second half my opponent shot 54 percent in the third quarter and 60 in the fourth, 51 for the game and 75 from the line.”
Just days after opening Southeastern Conference play with a 93-47 demolition of Florida, freshman forward Rickea Jackson and senior guard Jordan Danberry each notched 17 points a piece to lead all scorers.
For Jackson, Sunday’s outing marked the fifth-straight game in which she’s notched 14 or more points — including four outings of 17 or more.
In Danberry’s case, she’s now recorded double-digit scoring figures in 11 of her past 12 games — bumping her season average from 11.7 points per game to 13.8.
Sophomore guard Xaria Wiggins also turned in one of her more prolific efforts of the season. Normally a reserve option off the bench, Wiggins notched 13 points on 4 of 6 shooting — including a 3 of 4 performance from 3-point range.
Sophomore forward Jessika Carter — a Waverly Hall, Georgia native — was similarly productive — finishing with 13 points on 6 of 13 shooting.
Defensively, MSU turned 23 Georgia turnovers into 19 points and notched eight steals on the afternoon.
With the win, Schaefer’s bunch now sit at 2-0 in SEC play heading into Thursday’s game at Missouri. Last season, the Tigers were the only team to defeat the Bulldogs in conference play — downing MSU 75-67 at Humphrey Coliseum Feb. 14.
“A win on the road in this league is so difficult,” he said in a news release. “If you get one on the road it is worth a win and a half. Proud of our perseverance today. We fought through some foul trouble. Maybe our young kids grew up a little bit.”
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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