The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
12-7, 1-5
Tennessee Tech
7-10, 2-4
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee Tech | 32 | 29 | 61 |
| Ole Miss Lady Rebels | 25 | 44 | 69 |
Lady Rebels Fight Back, Defeat Tennessee Tech 69-61
1/28/2003 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 28, 2003
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Box Score
OXFORD, Miss. - Ole Miss (12-7, 1-5 SEC) stepped out of conference play Tuesday night and rode on the back of Amber Watts' career-high 25 points as the Lady Rebels came from behind to gut out a 69-61 win over Tennessee Tech (7-10, 2-4 OVC).
The Lady Rebels found themselves down seven at the half, but got the ball inside to Watts and attacked the offensive glass to get back into the game.
"It was a good effort tonight," said head coach Ron Aldy. "It wasn't easy by any means, and we weren't surprised because Tennessee Tech always has a well coached team. This win is good medicine for what ails us. We came out and played hard, and hopefully we can use this to get back on track in conference play."
Tennessee Tech came out of the gates fast, jumping on Ole Miss as the Golden Eaglettes pulled out to a 7-2 lead. Cold shooting and turnovers allowed Tennessee Tech to come out and hold onto the lead despite a late run by Ole Miss that saw the Lady Rebels cut the deficit to 32-25 at halftime.
Ole Miss came out focused in the second half, pounding the ball inside to Watts and driving to the hoop to cut the lead to two points, as the Lady Rebels put up a 9-to-4 run to open up the second half. The two teams swapped baskets before Ole Miss finally took the lead as Ashley Johnson converted on four straight points, two from the free throw line and then a basket to give Ole Miss a 54-53 lead. The Lady Rebels would never trail again in the game.
Three Ole Miss players scored in double digits for the game as Johnson added 17 points and Genice Terry put up 10 points. Watts played her most complete game of her season pulling down seven rebounds and five blocks to go with her career-high in points.
"When Amber gets some short opportunities like she did, it definitely improves our shooting percentage," Aldy said. "She was moving well around the basket and was making it to the free throw line a lot."
The Golden Eaglettes saw three players score in double digits as well, led by Arleigh Brackin's 15 points. Emily Christian added 14 points for the game while Jennifer Simpson put up 12 points.
The Lady Rebels out-rebounded Tennessee Tech 44-40, while winning the turnover battle by a 17-20 margin. Ole Miss made the most of the turnovers forced in the second half, scoring 14 points off turnovers for the game and using the offensive boards to set up second chance scoring opportunities, scoring 17 second chance points for the contest.
Ole Miss will return to SEC action when the Lady Rebels host Auburn on Sunday. Tip off is set for 2 p.m., in Tad Smith Coliseum and the game will be broadcast by Fox SportsSouth.
