AUBURN, Ala. — A lot can happen in 4 minutes, 17 seconds.
Still, it’s not often a Southeastern Conference game can turn as quickly as it Thursday night at Auburn Arena.
Buoyed by a 17-0 run that started at the end of the third quarter and stretched into the fourth quarter, the No. 5 Mississippi State women’s basketball team defeated Auburn 77-47 before a crowd of 1,969.
Victoria Vivians tied for game-high scoring honors with 17 points. Chinwe Okorie scored all of her 16 points in the first half, while Teaira McCowan had 13 of her 15 in the second half for the Bulldogs (22-1, 8-1 SEC).
“Auburn made a run at us and I think we ended the game on a 29-5 run,” Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer said. “I am just really, really proud of our response. Auburn plays so hard. Their press is at an all-time frenzy. As hard as they play, you have to attack pressure with pressure. I thought when we made that run we finally started attacking pressure with pressure.”
A free throw by Vivians with 2:12 to go in the third quarter started the onslaught. McCowan scored on a layup off a feed from Dominique Dillingham.
Morgan William then hit a 3-pointer off an assist from Dillingham before McCowan hit two free throws to close the third quarter.
A three-point play by McCowan sparked a 9-0 spurt to open the fourth quarter. McCowan’s layup off an assist from William capped the run and pushed the lead to 65-42 with 8:07 remaining.
Getting started
Vivians also had a jump shot in the run off an assist from Dillingham, one of four by the senior. She said the Bulldogs responded after the Tigers took the game to them for much of the third quarter.
“They were being more aggressive than us,” Vivians said. “In the third quarter when they made the run, they were attacking the basket and getting transition shots. Coach told us to start attacking and we started attacking and we got to the free-throw line a little bit and we started going to our bigs. Our bigs were finishing on the inside, so we started feeding them and, eventually, our offense came on the outside.”
Auburn coach Terri Williams-Flournoy laughed when asked what happened in the game-changing run. She said the run happened so fast she couldn’t play back how what had been a close game at the end of the third quarter unraveled.
“I thought our girls made a great effort when we were down by 21 and cut it to (six),” Williams-Flournoy said. “It was an uphill battle to come back and we used a lot of effort and energy to get back. Mississippi State is a very good team, so it was just a tough night for us.”
Williams-Flournoy credited the Bulldogs for exploiting their size advantage in the post. Auburn doesn’t have a player taller than 6-foot-2 on its roster. The 31 points by Okorie, who is 6-5, and McCowan, who is 6-7, was the second-highest single-game total for the centers this season. They combined to score 38 points in an 82-49 victory against Florida on Jan. 12.
“Our five players were very special,” Schaefer said. “They were 12 of 16 (from the field) and had 11 rebounds, eight offensive.”
Home presence
Auburn senior guard Katie Frerking (13 points) said the Tigers (15-8, 5-4) didn’t deliver the same effort in the first or the fourth quarters. In the third quarter, the Tigers forced seven turnovers. In the fourth quarter, MSU committed only one. The Bulldogs finished with 16. It marked the sixth time this season Auburn has forced less than 20 turnovers in a game.
“It’s effort,” Frerking said. “That’s how we play and that’s who we are. I think somebody asked a question about what happened on the run. When we go in lulls where we don’t score, we can’t get in our press, and our press is what was working for us, and we have to fix that.”
Schaefer said MSU’s defense at the start of the fourth quarter helped turn the tide. The Tigers contributed to the reversal of fortunes by committing turnovers on their first three possessions. He said the Bulldogs’ ability to feed the post helped them steal the momentum and throw the punch that ultimately sealed the deal.
“Early in the fourth quarter I looked out there and I told my bench, ‘They’re tired. We need to put our foot down and go get them,’ and we did,” Schaefer said.
NOTES: Schaefer said Vivians didn’t practice Tuesday due to illness. He said she took two bags of fluid Tuesday after being up all day and all night Monday. “I felt good,” Vivians said. “I took a lot of shots.” Schaefer said Vivians returned to practice Wednesday and went 6 of 16 from the field (3 of 9 from 3-point range) and had six rebounds and two steals in 33 minutes. “That is what an All-American does,” Schaefer said. “I really look for her and for Teaira and Chinwe to start owning up and being even more responsible than they are with this group. I think that is what great players do, and I think those kids are going to do it.” … The win is the fourth in a row in the series for MSU. … The 30-point margin of victory is the Bulldogs’ largest in the series, which the Tigers lead 14-13. The 77 points are the most allowed by Auburn this season. It also is the Tigers’ worst loss of the season. … MSU had 20 assists for the fifth time in a game this season. The Bulldogs have shot 50 percent or better from the field in four of those games, including 50 percent (28 of 56) Thursday night. … MSU outrebounded Auburn 39-22. It marked the 17th time the Tigers have been outrebounded. The 17-rebound margin was the Tigers’ biggest deficit of the season. … Brandy Montgomery led Auburn with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting. … MSU will play host to Missouri at 1:30 p.m. Sunday (ESPNU).
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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