HATTIESBURG, Miss. – The Samford women's basketball team dropped a hard-fought 56-48 contest to Southern Mississippi in the title game of the Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic Saturday afternoon at Reed Green Coliseum.
 
The loss ends Samford's five-game win streak. The Bulldogs fall to 5-2 with the loss, while Southern Miss improves to 3-2 with the win.
 
"I was overall pleased with how our team approached this game," Samford head coach Mike Morris said. "We have to make some shots, and that's the bottom line. I thought we got some really good looks and broke them down from a defensive standpoint, but we were 6-for-25 from the arc. We have to do a better job of being tough enough to knock down some shots. But I was pleased with our effort in terms of taking care of the ball and competing."
 
As a team, Samford shot 37.7 percent overall and 24.0 percent from three-point range. USM shot 35.7 percent overall and 33.3 percent from beyond the arc. Samford was 2-of-4 from the free-throw line, while the Lady Eagles were 14-of-19 from the charity stripe.
 
Individually for Samford, Amara Mayers scored 14 points. Destiney Elliott had nine points and eight rebounds. Ellen Riggins also scored nine points for the Bulldogs, while Brittany Stevens added seven points. Mayers and Elliott were Samford's two representatives on the All-Tournament team.
 
Southern Miss was led by Caitlin Jenkins with 11 points and 11 rebounds. Jerontay Clemons and Keri Jewett-Giles added eight points each for the Lady Eagles.
 
After falling behind early in the first quarter, Samford came back to grab a 7-5 lead with 4:22 left in the period following a basket by Mayers. Southern Miss scored six of the next eight points to take an 11-9 lead with 2:20 left in the quarter after a basket by Tajanay Veiga. USM led, 11-10 after one quarter.
 
Southern Miss built a seven-point lead at 19-12 with 8:26 left in the second quarter after a three-point play by Jenkins. Samford came back to close to within two points at 19-17 with 7:20 left in the quarter after a three-pointer by Mayers. USM then pushed the lead out to eight points at 27-19 with 3:36 left in the period after a pair of free throws by Shayla Wilson. Samford cut the lead to three points at 27-24, but USM took a 31-26 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
 
USM pushed its lead out to eight points at 36-28 with 7:23 left in the third quarter after a three-pointer by Brittny Norris. Samford fought back to cut the lead to two points at 36-34 with 4:48 left in the quarter following a layup by Elliott. The Lady Eagles pushed their lead back out to six points at 42-36 with 2:56 left after a jumper by Jewett-Giles. Samford cut the lead to two points again on a three-pointer by Keke Fletcher to make the score 44-42 with 46 seconds left in the quarter. USM took a 46-42 lead into the final period.
 
Southern Miss scored the first six points of the fourth quarter to make the score 52-42 with 8:20 left after a jumper by Clemons. Samford cut the lead to five points at 52-47 with 2:29 left after a layup by Mayers. Samford, however, could get no closer as the Bulldogs eventually fell by the score of 56-48.
 
Samford will return to action on Tuesday, Dec. 1, when the Bulldogs play at Alabama A&M. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start from Huntsville, Ala.