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The Florida women’s basketball team will face a tough matchup against the Mississippi State Bulldogs Thursday night. The Bulldogs narrowly escaped the Tennessee Lady Volunteers 91-90 in a double overtime thriller Monday.
Tennessee’s Hot Start
The Lady Volunteers came out strong, leading the Bulldogs 7-3 halfway through the first quarter off a three from junior Tess Darby.
https://twitter.com/LadyVol_Hoops/status/1622749277276499968
Mississippi State junior guard JerKaila Jordan responded with five points of her own to put the Bulldogs on the board. Despite her efforts, Tennessee was able to maintain a 15-13 lead at the end of the first.
https://twitter.com/HailStateWBK/status/1622748541419667456
Knotted Up At Half
The second quarter saw high scoring ouputs for both teams. Senior forward Rickea Jackson added to the Volunteers’ lead at the top of the second. Jackson and sophomore forward Jillian Hollingshead lead Tennessee at the half with eight points a-piece.
https://twitter.com/LadyVol_Hoops/status/1622754350207578113
The Bulldogs put up 18 points in the quarter to overcome the deficit, tying up the game at 31 going into intermission.
Tennessee Takeover
The Volunteers struck first in the second half, with sophomore forward Karoline Striplin cashing in early.
https://twitter.com/LadyVol_Hoops/status/1622763473007439876
JerKaila Jordan gave Mississippi State everything she could, racking up a game-high 17 points halfway through the third quarter. This was Jordan’s highest output since the Bulldogs’ Dec. 21 game against New Mexico.
https://twitter.com/HailStateWBK/status/1622767023284518913
However, despite Jordan’s efforts, Tennessee continued to push ahead, putting 20 points in the quarter to Mississippi State’s 18. The score was 51-49 to start the fourth.
Reaching OT
Mississippi State freshman Debreasha Powe helped push her team ahead by sinking a 3 with just under nine minutes left in regulation.
https://twitter.com/HailStateWBK/status/1622770342203727872
The score was eventually tied up at 68 by the end of regulation, and the game headed to overtime.
Bulldogs Trounce Tennessee in 2OT
One overtime wasn’t enough for this matchup. After scoring 10 points each in the first overtime period, the teams headed to a second.
This was Mississippi State’s first double overtime game since the 2015 season.
Bulldogs junior forward Ramani Parker had help from graduate student Anastasia Hayes on a sweet basket with three minutes remaining in 2OT.
https://twitter.com/HailStateWBK/status/1622787742047297539
The Bulldogs were able to come out on top 91-90 and improve to 16-7 overall, 5-5 in conference play.
What’s Next
The Bulldogs will now travel to Gainesville to take on the Gators Thursday night in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. Tipoff is set for 7.
