Friday, November 23
Reed Green Coliseum
6 p.m.
Southern Miss
4-1
67
vs
60
Mississippi Valley State
1-4
1
2
3
4
F
Mississippi Valley S
11
14
20
15
60
Southern Miss
13
14
22
18
67
Southern Miss Wins on Day 1 of the Thanksgiving Classic
11/23/2018 10:57:00 PM | Women's Basketball
The Lady Eagles pushed past the Mississippi Valley State Devilettes for the win.
HATTIESBURG, Miss.– The Southern Miss Lady Eagles came away victorious in a hard-fought matchup against Mississippi Valley State, defeating the Devilettes 67-60.
Southern Miss (4-1) came away with another tick in the win column after a pressure-filled and hard hustle game with Mississippi Valley State (1-4). It was a standout game for redshirt senior Megan Brown, who had her first double-double of the season. The Lady Eagles have now extended their winning streak to two.
The Lady Eagles started out on top with a 13-11 start in the first quarter. teams battled back and forth, and the second quarter ended with both teams scoring 14 points. As the game progressed, it seemed the Lady Eagles just couldn't get a bucket as the pressure from the MVSU defense proved tough. Southern Miss powered on in the second half with 40 points in the second half to MVSU's 35.
Megan Brown led the team in points with 19 and rebounds with 13, as well as went 100 percent from the free throw line, going 3-3. This is the third double-double in Brown's career and the Lady Eagles are 2-1 when she records one. The 19 points is a season-high, and her 13 rebounds is the most in her career. She also had one steal against MVSU.
The Lady Eagles out-rebounded the Devilettes 47 to 29, with 30 of USM's coming from the defense. Out of Brown's 13 total rebounds, 10 were on the defensive side of the ball. None of MVSU's players rebounded in double figures.
Quotables – Joye Lee-McNelis
"We saw Megan Brown play tonight with a tremendous amount of confidence and that was truly a huge part of the game. She was the one out there with vocal leadership and confidence. She's that kid that's going to do it every day and show up every day. She's put so much pressure on herself and has wanted to have a lot of success going into her senior year. We have to remember she was out a whole month being sick and it was really tough. Hopefully tonight gives her a lot of confidence and overcomes a lot of the struggle that sets the stage for the rest of the season.
Sam Houston State is a great team. Their freshman No. 4, Amber Leggett is extremely good. She's a smooth player, a lefty, and has really done a great job. They've got some athleticism in their perimeter game and Coach Ravon Justice has really settled them down and they're playing very well. That is a team that we have to play a whole lot better tomorrow night to be able to get another dub on the board."
Quotables – Megan Brown
"The Holy Spirit is a good helper. He helped me out today. I had a hard time this morning, I don't know if it was something I ate for Thanksgiving, but it was a struggle, but we overcame together. This Mississippi Valley State team is scrappy. They play hard and they're going to challenge you in every possession. They will try to beat you to every loose ball and that's where we were exposed, it was in those little details, and they out-won us in those moments but we still came out on top."
Game 1: Troy 84 vs. SHSU 79
In game one of the Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic it was a tough matchup between the Troy Trojans and the Sam Houston State Bearkats. The Bearkats led by as much as 17 points in the first half and led 73-67 with three minutes left in the game, but Troy battled back with 11 points to take the win right out of SHSU's hands. The Trojans led for less than five minutes in the entire game but pulled it out with the 84-79 win.
Up Next
Saturday afternoon the 31stLady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic progresses on with Mississippi Valley State playing Troy in the early slot at 2pm and the Lady Eagles closing it out at 4pm against the Sam Houston State Bearkats.
Southern Miss (4-1) came away with another tick in the win column after a pressure-filled and hard hustle game with Mississippi Valley State (1-4). It was a standout game for redshirt senior Megan Brown, who had her first double-double of the season. The Lady Eagles have now extended their winning streak to two.
The Lady Eagles started out on top with a 13-11 start in the first quarter. teams battled back and forth, and the second quarter ended with both teams scoring 14 points. As the game progressed, it seemed the Lady Eagles just couldn't get a bucket as the pressure from the MVSU defense proved tough. Southern Miss powered on in the second half with 40 points in the second half to MVSU's 35.
Megan Brown led the team in points with 19 and rebounds with 13, as well as went 100 percent from the free throw line, going 3-3. This is the third double-double in Brown's career and the Lady Eagles are 2-1 when she records one. The 19 points is a season-high, and her 13 rebounds is the most in her career. She also had one steal against MVSU.
The Lady Eagles out-rebounded the Devilettes 47 to 29, with 30 of USM's coming from the defense. Out of Brown's 13 total rebounds, 10 were on the defensive side of the ball. None of MVSU's players rebounded in double figures.
Quotables – Joye Lee-McNelis
"We saw Megan Brown play tonight with a tremendous amount of confidence and that was truly a huge part of the game. She was the one out there with vocal leadership and confidence. She's that kid that's going to do it every day and show up every day. She's put so much pressure on herself and has wanted to have a lot of success going into her senior year. We have to remember she was out a whole month being sick and it was really tough. Hopefully tonight gives her a lot of confidence and overcomes a lot of the struggle that sets the stage for the rest of the season.
Sam Houston State is a great team. Their freshman No. 4, Amber Leggett is extremely good. She's a smooth player, a lefty, and has really done a great job. They've got some athleticism in their perimeter game and Coach Ravon Justice has really settled them down and they're playing very well. That is a team that we have to play a whole lot better tomorrow night to be able to get another dub on the board."
Quotables – Megan Brown
"The Holy Spirit is a good helper. He helped me out today. I had a hard time this morning, I don't know if it was something I ate for Thanksgiving, but it was a struggle, but we overcame together. This Mississippi Valley State team is scrappy. They play hard and they're going to challenge you in every possession. They will try to beat you to every loose ball and that's where we were exposed, it was in those little details, and they out-won us in those moments but we still came out on top."
Game 1: Troy 84 vs. SHSU 79
In game one of the Lady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic it was a tough matchup between the Troy Trojans and the Sam Houston State Bearkats. The Bearkats led by as much as 17 points in the first half and led 73-67 with three minutes left in the game, but Troy battled back with 11 points to take the win right out of SHSU's hands. The Trojans led for less than five minutes in the entire game but pulled it out with the 84-79 win.
Up Next
Saturday afternoon the 31stLady Eagle Thanksgiving Classic progresses on with Mississippi Valley State playing Troy in the early slot at 2pm and the Lady Eagles closing it out at 4pm against the Sam Houston State Bearkats.
Team Stats
VALLEY
USM
FG%
.404
.379
3FG%
.227
.200
FT%
.474
.840
RB
29
47
TO
15
16
STL
5
8
Game Leaders
Pts
19
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
4
Pts
10
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
8
Pts
9
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
Guard
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