The Lady Rebels improved to 3-1 on the young season Tuesday night, defeating Mississippi Valley State, 62-60. It was far from easy, however. The Lady Rebs led by 15 at one point and never trailed in the contest, but thanks to a surge by Delta Devilettes, it took a missed three-pointer at the buzzer by MVSU to give Ole Miss the win.
“One of the good things about sports is we celebrate wins,” Coach Brett Frank said following the close win Tuesday night.
Junior forward Diara Moore led the way with 15 points, her fourth straight game in double figures. Junior guard Valencia McFarland tied her season high with 12. Junior forward Kenyotta Jenkins garnered her first start of the season in the place of sophomore forward Danielle McCray, who recorded her first double-double of the season with 11 points and 12 rebounds off the bench.
“I thought she had a greater sense of urgency tonight,” Frank said of McCray.
For the Lady Rebels, Tuesday was their lowest point total in a game this season. They were 19-of-60 (31.7 percent) from the field and 1-of-18 (5.6 percent) from 3-point range. However, Ole Miss grabbed 20 offensive rebounds and tallied 20 second-chance points.
On the defensive end, the Lady Rebels came into the game giving up over 50 percent shooting from the floor. On Tuesday night, they allowed the Delta Devilettes to shoot just 23-of-67 (34.3 percent) from the floor.
“We set several goals for ourselves tonight.” Frank said. “I think we had six goals, and we accomplished four of those goals. So that is progress moving in the right direction.”
The goals that Frank says the team accomplished are: 20 or more offensive rebounds, win the rebound margin by at least 15 rebounds, keep the opponent at 60 points or less, and finally,keep the team fouls at 15 or less.
For the Lady Rebels, accomplishing their goals meant victory, even if by the slimmest of margins.
The Lady Rebels will return to action Thursday night against Lipscomb. This will be their fifth home game to start the season and their second of three games this week. Tip-off from Tad Smith Coliseum is set for 7 p.m.
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