Sam Purcell takes great pride in Mississippi State’s scouting report defense, and that defense rose to the occasion Saturday under the bright lights of the NCAA Tournament.
The No. 9 seed Bulldogs held California to 13 made field goals, the fewest MSU has allowed in a game since November, and defeated the No. 8 seed Golden Bears 59-46 in Los Angeles. Cal led for just 21 seconds as the Bulldogs took control in the first quarter and never looked back.
“We probably went through 15 games (on film). That’s how detailed we were,” MSU’s third-year head coach said. “The only thing I think we were missing is their social security numbers. We knew tendencies, which way they wanted to go. It was just really cool how my young women were dialed in and willing to accept the information, but then most importantly apply it.”
The team that takes the most 3-pointers per game in the Atlantic Coast Conference made just three of them in this game on 21 attempts. The duo of Ioanna Krimili and Lulu Twidale, nicknamed the “Splash Sisters,” were a combined 3-for-16. And it wasn’t just running the Golden Bears off the 3-point line. Like the Bulldogs, Cal’s biggest weakness offensively is turnovers, and MSU (22-11) forced 24 of them Saturday, including seven from Twidale.
The Golden Bears (25-9) took more than six minutes to make their first field goal and had just five points at the end of the first quarter. The Bulldogs were not exactly lighting the world on fire themselves, but they led by at least five for the last 34-plus minutes as Cal shot just 25 percent for the game.
“They’re very good 3-point shooters, so physicality, rebounding, denying and just being strong (were the keys),” said fifth-year senior Eniya Russell, who finished with 14 points. “Our defense disrupted them.”
With MSU also struggling from behind the arc, the Bulldogs went away from the 3-pointer almost entirely, attempting just two of them in the second half. They pounded the ball inside and scored 32 points in the paint, drawing 23 fouls in the game and shooting 79 percent at the free throw line.
Madina Okot, after a slow start, came up huge in her NCAA Tournament debut with 14 points and 13 rebounds to go along with two blocks and three steals.
“What Madina doesn’t necessarily get credit for is the deflections, the altering of passes, things that never show up on a box score, but most importantly her body language,” Purcell said. “She knew she wanted to do better. She didn’t put her head down. She just worked harder. When you have kids who think like that, you have chances.”
Purcell took a timeout midway through the third quarter after the Golden Bears trimmed MSU’s lead to six, and the Bulldogs responded by scoring seven straight points, five of them at the foul line. Their lead remained in double digits the rest of the way.
Jerkaila Jordan had a huge day on defense with four steals and two blocks as well as 10 points. Her plus/minus was a team-best +18 in 31 minutes. Ugonne Onyiah led Cal with 17 points and 15 rebounds, but MSU kept Twidale in check after her big first half and never allowed the Golden Bears to truly get going.
“Our emphasis this week was defense. We knew defense was going to win us this game,” Jordan said. “They’re a very smart team. They can pick you apart. But today our team came, we were locked in the first half and we got a lead on them early. We just made sure we stayed solid all four quarters.”
The win was the Bulldogs’ 12th straight first-round victory in the tournament, dating back to the turn of the millennium and the Sharon Fanning-Otis era.
MSU will play No. 1 seed USC in the second round Monday, and it will be an uphill battle against a Trojans team led by superstar sophomore JuJu Watkins as well as projected first-round WNBA Draft pick Kiki Iriafen.
“They’re loaded with talent,” Purcell said. “The storyline here in Hollywood has already been written. It’s USC going to face UConn in the Elite Eight. So like any good movie, we need a plot twist. We need to mix it up. But we’ve got our work cut out, because we’re playing one of the best teams in the country who’s mad that they’re in this bracket.”
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