The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
1-0
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North Florida
0-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Florida | 31 | 28 | 59 |
| Ole Miss | 37 | 31 | 68 |
Rebels Win Season Opener, 68-59
11/11/2011 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 11, 2011
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss women's basketball team downed North Florida, 68-59, Friday morning in the season opener for both teams.
With the win, Ole Miss improved to 1-0 while North Florida fell to 0-1.
Maggie McFerrin led Ole Miss with 11 points (including three threes), while Nikki Byrd added 10 and Valencia McFarland scored nine.
"I thought we were a little slow to start and we can't get back in that pattern again," head coach Renee Ladner said. "I think our defense will have to create offense. We let a lot of groups of people play and had a lot of people play today."
North Florida pushed its lead early, taking a 19-7 lead over the Rebels with 13:41 left in the first half. Ole Miss battled back to cut the lead to 19-14 on a fast-break layup from McFerrin with 10:54 left in the half.
A three from McFerrin tied the game at 20 with 7:08 to play in the half. Byrd hit a fast-break layup right before half to give Ole Miss a 37-29 lead. The Ospreys hit a shot at the buzzer to bring the score to 37-31 at the half.
McFerrin led the Rebels at the half with 11 points. Byrd and LaTosha Laws each recorded three rebounds in the half. Ole Miss shot 45.5 percent (15-33) from the floor while North Florida shot 54.2 percent (13-24).
In the second half, Ole Miss used a 16-4 run to go up 57-41 on a three pointer from Kenyotta Jenkins with 8:10 to play.
For the game, Ole Miss shot 41.3 percent (26-63) while North Florida shot 46.3 percent (25-54). Byrd and McFarland led Ole Miss with five rebounds each while McFarland recorded five assists.
Ole Miss will play at Lamar on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
