The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
17-9, 7-6SEC
Auburn
15-11, 6-7SEC
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ole Miss Lady Rebels | 30 | 38 | 68 |
| Auburn Tigers | 38 | 44 | 82 |
Lady Rebels Lose To Auburn, 82-68
2/24/2005 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 24, 2005
AUBURN, Ala. - The Ole Miss women's basketball team lost to the Auburn Tigers 82-68 Thursday night at Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum.
The Lady Rebels (17-9, 7-6 SEC) will now look to their final regular season game, Sunday afternoon versus South Carolina, to solidify their chances at a high seed in the SEC tournament and an NCAA tournament berth.
Sophomore Armintie Price followed up her 30-point performance against Georgia in Oxford last Sunday with 25 points and 11 rebounds at Auburn, both team highs for the Lady Rebels in the game.
Natasha Brackett paced Auburn (15-11, 6-7 SEC) with 28 points on the night.
"Auburn was just a little too much for us tonight," said Ole Miss head coach Carol Ross. "Defensively we struggled. Auburn is not a high-scoring team this year, and we let them score. We were a half step late on a lot of plays and did not rebound well. If you rebound well, you win. If you don't, you lose, and tonight was a pretty good indicator of that."
Auburn held a close lead for most of the first half before Louise Emeagi hit a three-pointer just before the buzzer to give the Tigers an eight-point advantage going into the locker room.
The Tigers came out sharp in the second half, pushing their lead to as many as 16 points midway through the period.
Ole Miss cut it to a 10-point game as late as the 3:50 mark, when Auburn's 6-5 center Marita Payne was called for her fifth foul, and Price hit both of her free throws.
The Lady Rebels could not take advantage of the Tigers' shot-blocking force gone from the game, though, as Auburn's lead continued to grow with the Lady Rebels missing several key free throws down the stretch.
On the night, Ole Miss shot 44.8 percent from the free-throw line to Auburn's 65.8 percent.
Amber Watts was the only other Lady Rebel in double figures with 11 points, while Jada Mincy and Elizabeth Cansdale added eight apiece.
The Tigers' Alexis Ogubie scored 18 points, while Payne added nine points and several of Auburn's 11 blocked shots.
Ole Miss now prepares for its final regular season match-up Sunday at 2 p.m. versus South Carolina on Senior Day, as it jockeys for SEC tournament position with Georgia and Vanderbilt.
"It will be a big day for our seniors. I hope all the fans, players and coaches will come out and support them. Carletta Brown, Amber Watts, Elizabeth Cansdale and Amber Terrell have meant a lot to this program since choosing Ole Miss four years ago," Ross said.
