The University of Mississippi Athletics
Lady Rebels Host Mississippi State Today
1/8/2006 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 8, 2006
OXFORD, Miss. -
The Lady Rebels (10-4) are looking to get back in the win column after collecting two-straight losses when they host in-state rival Mississippi State (5-9) on Sunday afternoon. The game is scheduled for 2 p.m., in Tad Smith Coliseum and will be televised live on FSN-South as part of the SEC-TV package.
Ole Miss and MSU are both looking to pick up their first win in conference play after both suffered losses in their SEC openers on Thursday. Ole Miss dropped a 70-84 decision to #17/18 Georgia, while MSU fell 44-65 to Arkansas in Starkville.
Ole Miss is led on the season by junior guard Armintie Price with 17.9 points and 10.7 rebounds per game. Price, a two-time 2005-06 SEC Player of the Week, has scored in double figures in 12-of-14 games this season and has collected eight double-doubles on the season.
Junior guard Ashley Awkward has been getting the nod at the point guard position for Ole Miss. Awkward is leading the team in assists with 2.8 per game. She also drops in 10.2 points and is second on the team with 1.6 steals per game.
After opening the season with three-straight games in double figures, sophomore forward Danetra Forrest collected her fourth double figure outing of the year with12 points in Ole Miss' loss to Georgia. Forrest made 4-of-7 shots from the field and cashed in on 4-of-5 from the foul line.
Sophomore forward Carla Bartee is Ole Miss' top player off the bench with 8.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per outing. Bartee posted her first double-double as a Lady Rebel with 15 points and 10 rebounds versus Louisiana Tech. She has also knocked down 18 triples on the season.
Under the direction of third-year head coach Carol Ross, the Lady Rebels are 46-29. Ross, who played at Ole Miss from 1979-82, earned SEC Co-Coach of the Year honors in 2004 after guiding Ole Miss back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in eight seasons. Ross' Lady Rebels returned to the NCAA Tournament in 2004-05, falling to George Washington in the first round of play.
Mississippi State enters Sunday's game with a 5-9 overall mark and an 0-1 mark in conference action. Before falling to Arkansas on Thursday, the Lady Bulldogs picked up a win over Birmingham Southern in the first game of the new year.
Freshman Robin Porter leads MSU with 10.4 points per game. Porter also grabs 5.1 boards per contest. Junior Natasha Henderson leads the team on the boards with 5.7 per game, while senior Mamie McKinney pulls down 5.6.
Lady Bulldog head coach Sharon Fanning is 158-128 in her 10th season at MSU. Her overall coaching mark is 481-348 in 29 seasons.
