After trailing for most of the first half, Mississippi State used a strong defensive third quarter to overtake South Florida and stay undefeated with a 59-52 victory over the Bulls in the Cayman Islands.
Down by six early in the third, the Bulldogs (8-0) scored eight straight points, with fifth-year senior guard Jerkaila Jordan scoring on a pair of driving layups and earning a three-point play on the second one. Kayla Thomas completed a three-point play of her own to give MSU the lead, and after South Florida (4-4) evened the score, Debreasha Powe connected on a 3-pointer to put the Bulldogs in front for good.
Jordan had 20 points despite missing all five of her 3-point attempts, and MSU finished just 2-for-13 from deep as a team. But the Bulldogs scored 38 of their points in the paint and had a 19-4 edge in points off turnovers. Eniya Russell was the only other MSU player in double figures, with 10 points.
The Bulldogs also had a big advantage at the free throw line, making 13 of 18 foul shots compared to just four of eight for the Bulls. Sammie Puisis had 22 points for South Florida on 8-for-13 shooting, including 4-for-8 from behind the arc, but MSU held the rest of the Bulls in check.
The road swing continues for the Bulldogs with a trip to Georgia Tech on Wednesday as part of the ACC-SEC Challenge. MSU defeated the Yellow Jackets 84-47 in the first round of the WBIT last year.
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