STARKVILLE, Miss. – The Samford women's basketball team opened the 2015-16 season with a hard-fought 68-47 setback at 11
th-ranked Mississippi State Friday night at Humphrey Coliseum.
"I'm pleased with our team and the way they competed and fought," Samford head coach
Mike Morris said. "Mississippi State is a very good team, probably the best team I've coached against since I've been the head coach here. We didn't win, but we got better tonight."
In the loss, Samford was led by junior guard
Brittany Stevens with 13 points. Seniors
Taylor Reece and
Amara Mayers added nine points each. Mayers led Samford in rebounding with five, while Stevens was the team leader in assists with four.
For Mississippi State, Dominique Dillingham led the way with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Jazzmun Holmes added 12 points for the home team.
Samford opened the game hot, jumping out to an early 8-3 lead following a jumper by Reece with 7:26 left in the first quarter. With Samford leading, 12-8, MSU outscored Samford, 8-0 over the last 4:34 of the first quarter, and MSU held a 16-12 advantage following the opening period.
In the second quarter, Mississippi State outscored Samford, 18-2, as MSU took a 34-14 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
Samford fought back to cut the lead to just nine points at 39-30 with 2:06 left in the third quarter following a three-pointer by Mayers. Samford outscored Mississippi State, 20-12 in the third quarter, and MSU led, 46-34 at the end of the third period.
In the fourth period, with Samford trailing, 54-43, Mississippi State went on a 10-0 run to push its lead to 64-43 with 2:27 to go after a jumper by Victoria Vivians. Samford could get no close than 19 points the rest of the way, as Mississippi State came away with the 68-47 win.
For the game, Samford made 42.1 percent of its shots, including 38.9 percent from three-point range. Mississippi State shot 32.5 percent overall, including a 10.0 percent effort from three-point range.
Samford will return to action Sunday, Nov. 15, when the Bulldogs host Auburn Montgomery. The game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. start from the Pete Hanna Center.
