STARKVILLE — Earlier this month, Mississippi State women’s basketball coach Vic Schaefer challenged Ketara Chapel and Breanna Richardson when he said he “didn’t notice them” when they were on the court.
Schaefer hoped the comment would motivate players he needs to play key roles at small and power forward if the Bulldogs are going to realize their hopes of getting back to the NCAA tournament.
One week after saying she was “timid” and “complacent” with her role on the team last season, Chapel is making amends in a big way. The 6-foot-1 sophomore forward had career-highs of 19 points and 11 rebounds Thursday night to lead MSU to a 74-61 victory against No. 17 West Virginia in the semifinals of the Preseason Women’s National Invitation Tournament before a crowd of 2,502 at Humphrey Coliseum.
The win pushed MSU (3-0) into the event’s championship game against Western Kentucky (3-0), which defeated Albany 63-54 Thursday night, at 2 p.m. Sunday (CBS Sports Network) at The Hump.
“I was proud of our toughness tonight,” Schaefer said. “I don’t think we got out-toughed too many times tonight. We take great pride in that.”
Victoria Vivians had 22 of her game-high 26 points in the second half, and Richardson added 10 points to help the Bulldogs outlast the Mountaineers (2-1) on a night when they shot 36 percent (27 of 75) from the field and 57.7 percent (15 of 26) from the free-throw line. MSU earned the win thanks to a 48-44 edge in rebounding. That might not sound impressive, but MSU had a 31-20 edge on the offensive glass. Chinwe Okorie, a 6-5 sophomore center, had only three points, but she had 10 of her rebounds on the offensive end. Chapel added seven offensive rebounds for her first career double-double.
“They pounded us on the offensive boards,” West Virginia coach Mike Carey said. “We got beat on the boards and we got beat in the paint. We got into foul trouble and had to play zone, which we don’t like to play much of. We got a couple of players not playing again and we got short on the bench again and had to go with three people playing out of position because we’re short right now. But give Mississippi State credit. They played hard here at home.”
Schaefer said Sunday he couldn’t remember a team he has coached winning when it gave up 83 points following a 93-83 victory against Arkansas State. Asked if he could recall a time when a team he has coached had 31 offensive rebounds, Schaefer said not in a big game like the one his team played Thursday. He praised Chapel, who he said is difficult to box out because she is “wiry,” and Okorie, whose long arms and overall size make it tough to move her when she gets position in the paint.
“Those just kill you,” Schaefer said of the offensive rebounds. “It is like sticking a knife in your heart if you’re trying to get kids to block out and you finally get them to miss and (you give up) second- or third-chance points. I have been on that side of it before, and it is kind of fun to be on the other side. That is that competitiveness I am talking about and our toughness and not being denied.”
MSU used a 15-0 run to turn a one-point lead into a 57-41 advantage with 10 minutes, 31 seconds remaining. Thirteen of the points in the run came as a result of offensive rebounds. MSU had a 26-10 edge in second-chance points. It also had a 26-14 edge in points off turnovers. West Virginia committed a season-high 24 turnovers.
A jumper by Vivians ignited the run. Offensive rebound putbacks by Richardson and Chapel followed. Richardson added a 3-pointer before Chapel converted another offensive rebound putback after a blocked shot. She added another putback on the following trip and then took a charge on the other end of the floor. That statistic didn’t get into the official boxcore, but Schaefer keeps track of that valuable category and said Chapel took three of the team’s eight charges. He said that kind of grit helped MSU earn an important victory against a program that went 30-5 last season and advanced to the NCAA tournament.
A year ago, Chapel averaged 4.2 points and 2.8 rebounds in 17.1 minutes (34 games). She only had three double-figure scoring games, but Schaefer said her versatility, length, and athleticism are valuable assets that could help make the Bulldogs even better a year after a 22-14 season that saw them advance to the quarterfinals of the Postseason WNIT.
Chapel said she no longer is taking the court “scared” because she knows she can compete with other players. She said the new-found confidence has helped her be more aggressive. She showcased that mentality by crashing the boards and attacking the basket whenever she could.
“Like I said, last year I was complacent and a lot more timid,” said Chapel, who had 14 points in the season opener against Mercer but didn’t score against Arkansas State. “This year, I put work in over the summer and I came back with confidence and I know I have teammates who believe in me and coaches who believe in me. I am just playing hard.”
Vivians also was in attack mode. The 6-1 freshman went 2 of 10 from the field in the first half. But Schaefer said she showed a true shooter’s approach and didn’t let the misses affect her. Vivians responded by going 8 of 13 from the field, including 4 of 8 from 3-point range, in the final 20 minutes.
“The difference is I played a whole lot better,” Vivians said. “I have been struggling with defense. Last game I fouled out. Tonight I tried to keep my mind on defense, and I just came out in the second half and just played.”
Crystal Leary hit two free throws with 4:06 remaining to cut MSU’s lead to 64-55. It was the first time the Mountaineers trimmed the lead below double figures since the 14:16 mark.
But West Virginia missed its next three shots from the field and Vivians hit two 3-pointers to stretch the lead back to double figures.
West Virginia played without redshirt sophomore Bre McDonald and junior Jessica Morton. McDonald was sitting out the third game of a three-game suspension, while Morton, a transfer from Gulf Coast State (Fla.) won’t be eligible until the second half of the season. Carey said the return of McDonald and Morton will make the team deeper and enable him to use players at their true positions. Their return also figures to give West Virginia more help for senior forward Averee Fields (team-high 23 points) and junior guard Bria Holmes (18 points on 8-of-23 shooting from the field).
“It is what I expected,” said Holmes, who received votes in the preseason All-America balloting, of MSU. “Like (coach Carey) stressed to us the day before in practice, they were going to be up the lane on me and I had to come off screens. I felt like that was a big key to the game tonight, coming off screens and getting open and helping my teammates. I feel like it didn’t come into effect. We didn’t come into effect according to the defense. We messed up a lot when we should have come off screens and listened to what he was saying.”
West Virginia built its biggest lead of the first half, 18-11, on two free throws by Fields with 9:47 seconds remaining. The Mountaineers then committed turnovers on their next four possessions, which allowed the Bulldogs to erase the advantage. West Virginia had 12 turnovers to MSU’s seven in the half.
Holmes led West Virginia with 13 points on 6-of-14 shooting.
Schaefer also praised the play of sophomore guard Dominique Dillingham, who spent most of the evening guarding Holmes. Dillingham only had three points, four rebounds, and two steals, but she played 38 minutes against Holmes, who played the whole game.
“You love our competitiveness,” Schaefer said. “It continues to amaze me a little bit, but, at the same time, I am quite getting used to it. You expect it now. These kids have no fear. It goes back to that old saying, ‘When you’re young, what you don’t know can’t hurt you.’ ”
MSU hit 7 of 8 free throws in the final 1:52 to match it biggest lead of the half and take a 35-32 halftime lead. The Bulldogs were 13 of 21 (61.9 percent) from the free-throw line in the half. The Mountaineers, who were whistled for 16 fouls, were 6 of 6 from the free-throw line.
Fields and Teana Muldrow had three fouls in the first half, while Lanay Montgomery, Linda Stepney, and Tyara Warren each had two. Stepney, who started at point guard, played only six minutes and didn’t return after picking up her second foul.
Stepney played all 20 minutes in the second half and finished with four points and five assists.
MSU played without senior center Martha Alwal and senior guard Kendra Grant and Savannah Carter. Alwal and Grant, who haven’t played this season, led the Bulldogs in scoring last season at 14.9 and 11.4 points per game, respectively. Carter had four turnovers in five minutes against Arkansas State.
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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