OXFORD, Miss. – The Lady Tigers of Texas Southern University fought hard and gave their hosts from the University of Mississippi a competitive game Thursday before falling 73-58 to the Rebels.
TSU's Joyce Kennerson scored a game-high 24 points and handed out seven assists for the Lady Tigers (5-6), who open Southwestern Athletic Conference play on New Year's Day.
Kennerson, a junior from Port Arthur, Texas (Memorial) passed Charlene Hale (1978-82) for seventh on TSU's all-time scoring list with her seventh point of the afternoon. Kennerson, who ranks second in the nation in scoring with an average of 25.9 points per game, has scored 1,152 points in her TSU career.
Kaitlyn Palmer chipped in 14 points for TSU, while Camille Mills scored 10 points and recorded four steals for the second consecutive game. Mills was also the Lady Tigers' top rebounder on Thursday, pulling in eight caroms.
Shelby Gibson scored 20 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead Mississippi (10-3), while Alissa Alston added 17 points for the Rebels.
NEXT UP:
The Lady Tigers open SWAC play on Monday, Jan. 1, when they host Southern at TSU's H&PE Arena in the first game of a doubleheader between the two schools. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Rebels led from start to finish as they scored the first 12 points of the game; they kept TSU off the scoreboard until the 5:25 mark of the first quarter, when Palmer drained a 3-pointer. Palmer knocked down four 3-pointers during the game.
Mississippi would stretch its lead to 17 points toward the end of the first quarter, but could not shake the Lady Tigers completely, who outscored their hosts 19-17 in the second quarter, and 13-11 in the third period. TSU scored the first five points after halftime on a shot by Taylor Robinson and a 3-pointer by Kennerson to pull within nine points with 8:56 left to play in the third quarter.
The Rebels helped their cause by shooting 45 percent (27 of 60) from the floor, while holding TSU to 38 percent (21 of 55). TSU did manage to outshoot their hosts from 3-point range (8 of 22, 36.4 percent; to 6 of 20, 30 percent), and shot 50 percent from the floor (10 of 20) in the first quarter.
Turnovers played a part in Mississippi's win, as the Rebels forced 21 TSU turnovers. Mississippi gave the ball to TSU 17 times.
KEY POINTS:
• The Lady Tigers faced Mississippi for the first time in their history. It was also the first time since 1994 the Lady Tigers have played a team from the Southeastern Conference that wasn't LSU or Arkansas.
• The game was the first non-conference game in Mississippi for the Lady Tigers since the 2015 Women's NIT.
• Mills shot 5-of-10 from the field, and also handed out five assists.
• Kennerson's seven assists moved her career total to 186, which ranks 15th in school history. The next four players in front of her are all within 10 assists or fewer.
Courtesy: TSU Athletics
TSU's Joyce Kennerson scored a game-high 24 points and handed out seven assists for the Lady Tigers (5-6), who open Southwestern Athletic Conference play on New Year's Day.
Kennerson, a junior from Port Arthur, Texas (Memorial) passed Charlene Hale (1978-82) for seventh on TSU's all-time scoring list with her seventh point of the afternoon. Kennerson, who ranks second in the nation in scoring with an average of 25.9 points per game, has scored 1,152 points in her TSU career.
Kaitlyn Palmer chipped in 14 points for TSU, while Camille Mills scored 10 points and recorded four steals for the second consecutive game. Mills was also the Lady Tigers' top rebounder on Thursday, pulling in eight caroms.
Shelby Gibson scored 20 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead Mississippi (10-3), while Alissa Alston added 17 points for the Rebels.
NEXT UP:
The Lady Tigers open SWAC play on Monday, Jan. 1, when they host Southern at TSU's H&PE Arena in the first game of a doubleheader between the two schools. Tipoff is scheduled for 5 p.m.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Rebels led from start to finish as they scored the first 12 points of the game; they kept TSU off the scoreboard until the 5:25 mark of the first quarter, when Palmer drained a 3-pointer. Palmer knocked down four 3-pointers during the game.
Mississippi would stretch its lead to 17 points toward the end of the first quarter, but could not shake the Lady Tigers completely, who outscored their hosts 19-17 in the second quarter, and 13-11 in the third period. TSU scored the first five points after halftime on a shot by Taylor Robinson and a 3-pointer by Kennerson to pull within nine points with 8:56 left to play in the third quarter.
The Rebels helped their cause by shooting 45 percent (27 of 60) from the floor, while holding TSU to 38 percent (21 of 55). TSU did manage to outshoot their hosts from 3-point range (8 of 22, 36.4 percent; to 6 of 20, 30 percent), and shot 50 percent from the floor (10 of 20) in the first quarter.
Turnovers played a part in Mississippi's win, as the Rebels forced 21 TSU turnovers. Mississippi gave the ball to TSU 17 times.
KEY POINTS:
• The Lady Tigers faced Mississippi for the first time in their history. It was also the first time since 1994 the Lady Tigers have played a team from the Southeastern Conference that wasn't LSU or Arkansas.
• The game was the first non-conference game in Mississippi for the Lady Tigers since the 2015 Women's NIT.
• Mills shot 5-of-10 from the field, and also handed out five assists.
• Kennerson's seven assists moved her career total to 186, which ranks 15th in school history. The next four players in front of her are all within 10 assists or fewer.
Courtesy: TSU Athletics