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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Thursday, January 10
Oxford, Miss.
7 PM
Ole Miss
6-11, 0-3SEC
41
vs
55
LSU
11-4, 2-1SEC
1
2
3
4
F
LSU
10
22
5
18
55
Ole Miss
7
8
14
12
41
Rebels Come Up Short in Defensive Slugfest to LSU, 55-41
1/10/2019 | Women's Basketball
Box Score<i class="icon-paper"></i> Final Stats (PDF)<i class="icon-camera"></i> Photos<i class="icon-video"></i> Highlights<i class="icon-video"></i> Postgame
Shandricka Sessom (11 points, 10 rebounds) Recorded Her Eighth-Career Double-Double
OXFORD, Miss. – Ole Miss put up a fight against the SEC's top-ranked defense, but it was LSU that emerged victorious after a 55-41 defensive struggle at The Pavilion on Thursday evening.
The Rebels (6-11, 0-3 SEC) went blow-for-blow in a knock-down, drag-out contest against the Lady Tigers (11-4, 2-1 SEC), pulling within single digits several times over the last 13 minutes of action after trailing by 17 at halftime. LSU put the Rebels in heavy foul trouble, though, taking advantage with a 21-of-28 clip from the charity stripe to overcome a cold shooting night for both teams from the floor.
"That was a rough one," said Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin. "Like I said, it was going to be that type of grind-it-out game. There's a reason why that team has 11 wins and only four losses. They beat us at that type of game. Last game (against Arkansas), I thought we got out-coached. This game, I don't think we got out-coached. My job is to give the players an opportunity to have success, and I felt like from a game-planning standpoint, we did that. What you're seeing is an experienced team versus an inexperienced team."
Despite pulling even elsewhere in the physical game, the second quarter once again proved to be the Achilles' heel for Ole Miss. After a tight first quarter advantage of 10-7, LSU opened that up to a 32-15 halftime lead after a 22-8 edge in the second frame.
"We allowed our offense and us missing to take away our grit on the defensive end," McPhee-McCuin said. "We just couldn't sustain and we fouled a lot, and I think that gave them the lead."
That lead proved difficult to track down, but Ole Miss showed some resiliency with a third-quarter comeback that setup an interesting fourth quarter. The Rebel defense held LSU scoreless for two different streaks of 2:56 and 4:40 in the third, allowing the Ole Miss offense room to breathe.
Senior La'Karis Salter (nine points, three rebounds, two steals) started the action with back-to-back jumpers to open the second half, but she quickly picked up her fourth personal foul to sap some of the Rebel momentum she helped generate. Senior Crystal Allen (12 points, five assists, two rebounds, two steals) led the charge during the long Lady Tiger drought with a three-pointer, her only trey of the game. By quarter's end, Ole Miss had drawn to within eight at 37-29.
That would be as close as the Rebels would get, though, as the foul trouble picked up tenfold in the fourth. Three Rebels ended up fouling out in the fourth quarter: Salter, Mimi Reid (one point) and Jhileiya Dunlap (three points, three assists, two steals, one block), while Allen and Taylor Smith (three rebounds, two steals) played with four fouls by game's end. LSU shot 11-of-14 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter alone.
"If they get a lead, it's hard to come back," McPhee-McCuin said. "I would have had to empty the bench, and I just don't have that in the arsenal right now."
Allen's 12-point outing is her 15th double-digit effort in 17 tries this season, and senior Shandricka Sessom recorded her eighth career double-double and her first since Nov. 21, 2017 (vs. Troy; 15 points, 10 rebounds) with an 11-point, 10-rebound performance against LSU tonight.
Both teams shot a combined 33.3 percent from the field and 24.1 percent from three in the low-scoring contest this evening.
"At the end of the day, you've got to be able to put that round ball in what they call a basket, and we didn't do that," McPhee-McCuin said. "We're going to continue to try and give our girls the confidence to make those shots, and I'm going to continue to challenge myself and my staff to have a solid gameplan."
The SEC gauntlet rolls on this weekend, with the Rebels making a trek to the Bluegrass State to take on an upstart Kentucky (15-2, 2-1 SEC) squad that ranks No. 16 nationally and just defeated No. 13 Tennessee for the first time since 2014 on Thursday night. Tipoff is set for 12 p.m. CT on Sunday, and the game will air live on SEC Network.
"One thing I've learned in three games is this is like The Hunger Games," McPhee-McCuin said. "You're either going to eat, or you're going to be eaten."
Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB on Instagram at Ole MissWBB and on Snapchat with the handle @OleMissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on Twitter at @YolettMcCuin
The Rebels (6-11, 0-3 SEC) went blow-for-blow in a knock-down, drag-out contest against the Lady Tigers (11-4, 2-1 SEC), pulling within single digits several times over the last 13 minutes of action after trailing by 17 at halftime. LSU put the Rebels in heavy foul trouble, though, taking advantage with a 21-of-28 clip from the charity stripe to overcome a cold shooting night for both teams from the floor.
"That was a rough one," said Ole Miss head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin. "Like I said, it was going to be that type of grind-it-out game. There's a reason why that team has 11 wins and only four losses. They beat us at that type of game. Last game (against Arkansas), I thought we got out-coached. This game, I don't think we got out-coached. My job is to give the players an opportunity to have success, and I felt like from a game-planning standpoint, we did that. What you're seeing is an experienced team versus an inexperienced team."
Despite pulling even elsewhere in the physical game, the second quarter once again proved to be the Achilles' heel for Ole Miss. After a tight first quarter advantage of 10-7, LSU opened that up to a 32-15 halftime lead after a 22-8 edge in the second frame.
"We allowed our offense and us missing to take away our grit on the defensive end," McPhee-McCuin said. "We just couldn't sustain and we fouled a lot, and I think that gave them the lead."
That lead proved difficult to track down, but Ole Miss showed some resiliency with a third-quarter comeback that setup an interesting fourth quarter. The Rebel defense held LSU scoreless for two different streaks of 2:56 and 4:40 in the third, allowing the Ole Miss offense room to breathe.
Senior La'Karis Salter (nine points, three rebounds, two steals) started the action with back-to-back jumpers to open the second half, but she quickly picked up her fourth personal foul to sap some of the Rebel momentum she helped generate. Senior Crystal Allen (12 points, five assists, two rebounds, two steals) led the charge during the long Lady Tiger drought with a three-pointer, her only trey of the game. By quarter's end, Ole Miss had drawn to within eight at 37-29.
That would be as close as the Rebels would get, though, as the foul trouble picked up tenfold in the fourth. Three Rebels ended up fouling out in the fourth quarter: Salter, Mimi Reid (one point) and Jhileiya Dunlap (three points, three assists, two steals, one block), while Allen and Taylor Smith (three rebounds, two steals) played with four fouls by game's end. LSU shot 11-of-14 from the free throw line in the fourth quarter alone.
"If they get a lead, it's hard to come back," McPhee-McCuin said. "I would have had to empty the bench, and I just don't have that in the arsenal right now."
Allen's 12-point outing is her 15th double-digit effort in 17 tries this season, and senior Shandricka Sessom recorded her eighth career double-double and her first since Nov. 21, 2017 (vs. Troy; 15 points, 10 rebounds) with an 11-point, 10-rebound performance against LSU tonight.
Both teams shot a combined 33.3 percent from the field and 24.1 percent from three in the low-scoring contest this evening.
"At the end of the day, you've got to be able to put that round ball in what they call a basket, and we didn't do that," McPhee-McCuin said. "We're going to continue to try and give our girls the confidence to make those shots, and I'm going to continue to challenge myself and my staff to have a solid gameplan."
The SEC gauntlet rolls on this weekend, with the Rebels making a trek to the Bluegrass State to take on an upstart Kentucky (15-2, 2-1 SEC) squad that ranks No. 16 nationally and just defeated No. 13 Tennessee for the first time since 2014 on Thursday night. Tipoff is set for 12 p.m. CT on Sunday, and the game will air live on SEC Network.
"One thing I've learned in three games is this is like The Hunger Games," McPhee-McCuin said. "You're either going to eat, or you're going to be eaten."
Follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB on Instagram at Ole MissWBB and on Snapchat with the handle @OleMissWBB. You can also follow head coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin on Twitter at @YolettMcCuin
Team Stats
LSU
OM
FG%
.366
.300
3FG%
.364
.167
FT%
.750
.700
RB
34
24
TO
23
23
STL
9
9
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
12
FGM
1
3FGM
1
FTM
9
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
3
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
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/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
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