Terryonte Thomas posted team highs of 24 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists and played all 40 minutes, but for the second consecutive game a late rally fell short as Mississippi University for Women’s men’s basketball team dropped a 74-66 decision to Bethel University on Friday at the Johnnie Armstrong Classic at Blue Mountain College. 

The W trailed 35-21 at halftime and fell behind by 17 at 40-23 with 17:29 left in the contest. A Brien Kimmons layup capped a 12-2 that pulled the Owls within 42-35.

But Bethel stretched the lead to 68-55 with 1:51 left before three consecutive 3-point baskets — two by Thomas sandwiching one by Shon Wright — made it 68-64 with 52 seconds to play.

But the Owls would get no closer. Bethel converted all six of its free throws in the waning seconds for the 74-66 final score. 

Thomas scored 19 of his points in the second half and finished the game 4 for 8 from 3-point range. Thomas Wright was 7 for 11 from the field and finished with 14 points and 5 rebounds, while Trey Jackson totaled 7 points and 6 rebounds. Ddallen Bailey also scored 7 points.

JaQuan Hines blocked two shots, giving him 17 in seven games played. Hines has at least one rejection in all seven of his appearances for the Owls.

Blue Mountain 74, The W 63: On Saturday, tournament host Blue Mountain College handed the Owls their ninth consecutive loss to open the season.

Terryonte Thomas again led the Owls with 26 points, while Thomas Wright added 10 points and a team-high 7 rebounds. MIlos Zeradjanin posted a team-best 4 assists.

Again, the Owls did some positive things. They held a 31-27 edge in rebounding, hit one more 3-pointer than the Toppers and held a 16-3 edge in second-chance points.. But they could not overcome a dramatic difference in field goal percentage.

Blue Mountain connected on 27 of 50 shots, or 54 percent. The W managed just 22 of 56 for 38.6 percent. 

The Toppers led 40-34 at halftime.

The Owls will get another crack at the Toppers, as the teams are scheduled for a rematch at 6 p.m. Thursday at Pohl Gym.  

 

East Mississippi 69, Meridian 51: Jakorie Smith scored a game-high 26 points, including 4 of 8 from 3-point range, to lead No. 23 East Mississippi to its fifth straight win. 

Smith got off to a strong start for the Lions (8-2), hitting back-to-back 3-pointers, then making a steal and feeding Blake Butler for a dunk. But the game was tied at 12-12 before a 7-0 run capped by another Smith trey put the Lions ahead to stay.

Meridian did narrow the gap late in the first half, but EMCC scored 9 of the final 11 points of the half, including a putback and 3-pointer by Nick Walker, to take a 34-26 lead into the locker room.

Walker had a game-high 9 rebounds for the Lions, who dominated the boards, outrebounding the visitors 44-24. 

Danny Washington’s 3-pointer 4 minutes into the second half gave EMCC a double-digit lead it would maintain the rest of the game. 

Butler finished with 16 points for the Lions, including 12 during the second half. Washington and Kevin Henry each had 4 assists, and the Lions hit all six of their free throws.

Meridian (8-2) was led by Brandon Ellington’s 11 points. The Lions will close their pre-Christmas slate with a Monday rematch with 15th-ranked Shelton State Community College in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. EMCC posted an 84-82 overtime win in the first matchup on Nov. 29 in Scooba. EMCC’s women’s team will face No. 6 Shelton State at 5:30 p.m., with the men to follow at 7:30 p.m.

 

Women’s tennis

Bulldogs unveil spring schedule

The Mississippi State women’s tennis team announced a schedule with 13 home matches at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre and Rula Tennis Pavilion this spring.

A three-match homestand will open the season as MSU will host Jacksonville State on Jan. 15 and play a doubleheader against Memphis and Louisiana the following weekend.

The Bulldogs then will be on the road for more than a month, beginning with the ITA Kickoff in Athens, Georgia to take on Iowa on Jan. 28 and then North Florida or Georgia.

The Bulldogs will travel to Tulane on Feb. 6, then play SMU and Baylor on Feb. 19-20 in Waco, Texas, before returning to Starkville to host Southern Miss and James Madison in a twinbill on Feb. 26. 

MSU made its nonconference schedule as challenging as possible to prepare for Southeastern Conference play, which begins with back-to-back trips March 4 to Tennessee and March 6 to Georgia. A six-match homestand will feature Texas A&M on March 11, LSU and North Alabama on March 13, Auburn on March 18 and Alabama and Alcorn State on March 20.

Mississippi State then will trek March 25 to South Carolina, March 27 to Florida and April 3 to Ole Miss before its final two-match homestand against Arkansas (April 8) and Missouri (April 10). The Bulldogs will close out the regular season at Vanderbilt on April 15 and at Kentucky on April 17.

Florida will host the SEC Championships from April 20-24.