A 3-point halftime deficit ballooned to 23 points in just a few minutes of the third quarter on Thursday night as the Mississippi State women’s basketball team lost its fourth consecutive game, 86-64 to No. 16 Tennessee before 7,009 at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Another impressive scoring performance from Anastasia Hayes with 18 points, followed by Caterrion Thompson with 16 points, was about as much as the Bulldogs could muster. They shot just 36 percent from the field while taking 72 shots to Tennessee’s 65 attempts.
The Bulldogs (15-12, 6-9 Southeastern Conference) are no doubt fatigued after playing shorthanded for most of the season, and the crowded schedule down the stretch because of earlier COVID-related postponements certainly didn’t help. Interim coach Doug Novak admitted it was a factor, but he also believes in his team to make something of their chances in the SEC tournament, and possibly the NCAA tournament as well.
“We can do this; we can stay in the fight longer,” Novak said of his team’s hopes of playing in the postseason. “I believe in them, and we’re not gonna use excuses. Nobody cares about the choppy water. They just want you to land the ship.”
The Bulldogs again had just seven players active for the game, with Charlotte Kohl their only player over 6 feet assigned to match up with Tennessee’s Tamari Key. Even with Key missing a stretch of the first half, the Vols (22-6, 11-4 SEC) mostly had their way in the paint against the Bulldogs, outrebounding them 50-27.
It’s something they’re used to, especially after Denae Carter’s season-ending injury at the end of January, but typically they’ve been able to stay in games.
That was the case in the first half, with the Bulldogs pulling to within 3 just before the break to cap an impressive second quarter, but they had no answer for the Vols coming out of the locker room. Tennessee took the third quarter with a big 30-16 score and sealed the win with a strong fourth quarter to maintain a healthy lead.
Novak, a Tennessee alum, took the loss pretty hard, and even noted a turn in his feelings toward the aesthetics of his alma mater.
“Once that ball went up, I couldn’t stand looking at that orange,” Novak said after the game. “‘Rocky Top’ at one time was one of my all-time favorite songs, and now that might be the worst song I’ve ever heard.”
Up next the Bulldogs return home to face Arkansas on Sunday in their last game of the regular season. They will head to Nashville for the SEC tournament beginning March 2.
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