STARKVILLE — Vic Schaefer scratched his brow.
After watching his team lead by as many as 20 in the third quarter, Schaefer meandered off the court at Humphrey Coliseum — white dress shirt dripping with sweat — as Mississippi State (16-2, 4-0) survived errant inbounds passes, a missed layup and three video reviews in the final minute to outlast LSU (13-4, 3-2) 64-60 Thursday.
“Once we got up we got complacent, to be honest with you,” he said postgame. “Somebody said, ‘Well you know your team has probably looking ahead.’ If my team has been looking ahead I’ll wear that because you can’t be looking ahead in this league. You look ahead and something like what almost just happened, will happen.”
Just days ahead of a Monday contest with No. 1 South Carolina Monday, the Bulldogs needed a full 40 minutes to handle 2019 All-SEC forward Ayana Mitchell and a scrappy Tigers squad in Starkville.
Battling Mitchell — who led all scorers with 22 points and 12 rebounds — for the majority of the night, sophomore center Jessika Carter played all 40 minutes for the first time in her career and notched her sixth double-double of the year with an 13-point, 11-rebound effort.
Carter’s block on LSU center Faustine Aifuwa — her third of the night — also gave MSU the game-sealing play it needed down the stretch to escape a pesky Tigers team.
“I knew it was going to be a battle in the paint tonight,” she said. “And for us to win I would have to handle my business and that’s what I did.”
Beyond Carter, it was an unexpected start from junior guard Andrea Espinoza-Hunter that provided an added spark for Schaefer’s bunch.
With freshman forward Rickea Jackson battling an injury over the past few days, Schaefer inserted Espinoza-Hunter into the starting lineup for the first time since Dec. 8 against West Virginia.
After sitting down with Schaefer earlier in the week to discuss her role on the team and expectations going forward, the one-time Connecticut transfer responded. Flashing the inside-out ability that made her a stalwart in the starting lineup on last season’s Elite Eight team, Espinoza-Hunter finished the night with 10 points on 5 of 9 shooting in 37 minutes of action — marking her first double-digit scoring output since she notched 12 against Louisiana Dec. 16
“I just had a gut feeling about her tonight and she played awfully well,” Schaefer said.
“It felt great to help my team win,” she added. “I know I went from being a starter and I haven’t played as much but we’re still winning so I’m still happy. If I’m playing zero minutes or I’m playing 37 and we come out with the (win) I’m still going to be happy with my team’s success.”
In the backcourt, senior guard Jordan Danberry — whose made free throw with 0.9 seconds remaining iced the win — also notched her ninth-straight double-digit scoring output, scoring 16 points on 7 of 11 shooting.
Now sitting at 4-0 in SEC play, Schaefer’s squad will practice Sunday before heading to Columbia for Monday’s date with the Gamecocks.
“I’ve got to coach better and teach better at the end of the day,” he said. “Proud of my team — glad to get this win.”
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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