Mississippi State went back and forth with a much-improved Georgia Tech team on the road Wednesday night, but came up three points short in a 78-75 loss as part of the ACC-SEC Challenge.

The Bulldogs (8-1) took a one-point lead with less than 90 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter on a 3-pointer by Debreasha Powe before the Yellow Jackets (8-0) went back in front on their next possession. Two free throws extended the hosts’ lead to three, and MSU had two chances to tie the game on its final possession and send it to overtime.

But Eniya Russell misfired from 3-point range, and after an offensive rebound by Denim DeShields, Russell missed again from the corner, and the Bulldogs were knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten.

MSU led for most of the first half, taking a seven-point lead in the final minute of the second quarter. Georgia Tech came out hot in the third, and the teams were never separated by more than five points for the entire second half. The game featured a total of 17 lead changes and was tied five times.

Turnovers were a big part of the Bulldogs’ undoing — they committed 17 of them while forcing just six, leading to a 13-2 edge in points off turnovers for the Yellow Jackets. MSU made 54.2 percent of its shots compared with 38 percent for Georgia Tech, but thanks in large part to those turnovers, the Yellow Jackets attempted 20 more field goals than the Bulldogs.

Georgia Tech also attempted 38 shots from behind the arc while MSU had just 17. The Bulldogs’ 38-25 edge in defensive rebounds was almost entirely negated by the Yellow Jackets pulling down 12 offensive rebounds to MSU’s three. That led to a 9-0 margin in second-chance points in Georgia Tech’s favor. The Yellow Jackets’ bench also outscored that of the Bulldogs, 30-12.

Jerkaila Jordan had her best game of the year offensively, finishing with 25 points on 10-for-19 shooting. Russell added 18 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, while Chandler Prater chipped in with 10 points and made all five of her field goals.

MSU’s long road swing continues with a trip to Chicago State on Sunday. The Cougars are led by first-year head coach Corry Irvin, who was an assistant with the Bulldogs for the last two seasons under Sam Purcell.