Thursday, January 19
Boone, N.C. / Holmes Convocation Center
5:30 p.m. CST / 6:30 p.m. EST
Southern Miss
13-5,6-1Sun Belt
75
at
68
Appalachian State
7-11,3-4Sun Belt
1
2
3
4
F
Southern Miss.
20
13
20
22
75
App State
19
12
12
25
68
Grayson’s Double-Double Pushes Southern Miss Over App State
1/19/2023 8:28:00 PM | Women's Basketball
BOONE, N.C. – Melyia Grayson's 26-point, 15-board performance propelled Southern Miss to a 75-68 victory over Appalachian State. Grayson set a season-high in points and a career-high in rebounds.
Her double-double is the fourth for the Lady Eagles this year and Grayson's first since Feb. 7, 2022 against UTSA.
"We made some really bad mistakes there in the fourth quarter and it was frustrating so I give them credit for that," said Joye Lee-McNelis. "Hats off to App State for that but I couldn't be prouder of the way we came back and got our composure back in the final stretch. We felt like Melyia and Femi were going to be the mismatches today and we did a lot things getting Melyia the ball. Dom and Lani were doing really well in getting it to her and thankfully she was able to connect. She was the difference tonight."
Tale of the Tape
Southern Miss (13-5, 6-1 Sun Belt) got started early as Chardai Watkins (Panola, Ala. // Sumter Central HS) put the Lady Eagles on the board 15 seconds into play. The bucket marked the first of four for Watkins in the first quarter, tying her previous career-high with eight points.
She finished the day with without another basket but contributed five boards on the day.
In total, five Lady Eagles scored in the first frame to give Southern Miss a 20-19 lead going into the break.
Emily Carver more than paced App State (7-11, 3-4 Sun Belt) in the first quarter, dropping 13 points in the opener and 16 in the first half. Carver finished with 23, breaking a previous career-high of 22.
The Mountaineers grabbed the lead early in the second quarter and held on until the final two minutes. With the score knotted at 31, Melyia Grayson (Hattiesburg, Miss. // Hattiesburg HS) found pay dirt six seconds on the clock. Grayson's basket marked her tenth point of the evening as she tallied 26 points and 15 rebounds, setting a career high in boards.
Southern Miss grabbed a 15-point lead in the third quarter as the Black & Gold cruised to a 20-12 margin the third.
Grayson scored 16 points in the second half to keep Southern Miss in the game as App State did all they could to come back. The Mountaineers made it within one point under two minutes to play but timely free throws and timeouts assisted Southern Miss to the victory.
The Lady Eagles outscored App State 42-26 in the paint on the evening and Domonique Davis (DeRidder, La. // LSU) and Jacorriah Bracey (Drew, Miss. // Ole Miss) finished in double-figures with 11 and 10, respectively.
Led by Grayson's 15 boards, the Lady Eagles outrebounded the Mountaineers 49-28, the 21-pont margin matching a previous best against Louisiana.
Up Next
Southern Miss continues its trip, staying in the Appalachian mountains with a Saturday tip against Marshall. Tipoff from Marshall's Cam Henderson Center is set for Noon CST / 1 p.m. EST.
As always, Jason Baker will be on the call live from Huntington with the Lady Eagle Basketball pregame show beginning at 11:30 a.m. CST / 12:30 p.m. EST. Broadcasts can be heard at 92.7 FM The Score in Hattiesburg or on the Southern Miss Game Day App and Southern Miss Sports Network.
The game can also be streamed via ESPN+ with Mark Martin and Jayden Taylor providing commentary.
Her double-double is the fourth for the Lady Eagles this year and Grayson's first since Feb. 7, 2022 against UTSA.
"We made some really bad mistakes there in the fourth quarter and it was frustrating so I give them credit for that," said Joye Lee-McNelis. "Hats off to App State for that but I couldn't be prouder of the way we came back and got our composure back in the final stretch. We felt like Melyia and Femi were going to be the mismatches today and we did a lot things getting Melyia the ball. Dom and Lani were doing really well in getting it to her and thankfully she was able to connect. She was the difference tonight."
Tale of the Tape
Southern Miss (13-5, 6-1 Sun Belt) got started early as Chardai Watkins (Panola, Ala. // Sumter Central HS) put the Lady Eagles on the board 15 seconds into play. The bucket marked the first of four for Watkins in the first quarter, tying her previous career-high with eight points.
She finished the day with without another basket but contributed five boards on the day.
In total, five Lady Eagles scored in the first frame to give Southern Miss a 20-19 lead going into the break.
Emily Carver more than paced App State (7-11, 3-4 Sun Belt) in the first quarter, dropping 13 points in the opener and 16 in the first half. Carver finished with 23, breaking a previous career-high of 22.
The Mountaineers grabbed the lead early in the second quarter and held on until the final two minutes. With the score knotted at 31, Melyia Grayson (Hattiesburg, Miss. // Hattiesburg HS) found pay dirt six seconds on the clock. Grayson's basket marked her tenth point of the evening as she tallied 26 points and 15 rebounds, setting a career high in boards.
Southern Miss grabbed a 15-point lead in the third quarter as the Black & Gold cruised to a 20-12 margin the third.
Grayson scored 16 points in the second half to keep Southern Miss in the game as App State did all they could to come back. The Mountaineers made it within one point under two minutes to play but timely free throws and timeouts assisted Southern Miss to the victory.
The Lady Eagles outscored App State 42-26 in the paint on the evening and Domonique Davis (DeRidder, La. // LSU) and Jacorriah Bracey (Drew, Miss. // Ole Miss) finished in double-figures with 11 and 10, respectively.
Led by Grayson's 15 boards, the Lady Eagles outrebounded the Mountaineers 49-28, the 21-pont margin matching a previous best against Louisiana.
Up Next
Southern Miss continues its trip, staying in the Appalachian mountains with a Saturday tip against Marshall. Tipoff from Marshall's Cam Henderson Center is set for Noon CST / 1 p.m. EST.
As always, Jason Baker will be on the call live from Huntington with the Lady Eagle Basketball pregame show beginning at 11:30 a.m. CST / 12:30 p.m. EST. Broadcasts can be heard at 92.7 FM The Score in Hattiesburg or on the Southern Miss Game Day App and Southern Miss Sports Network.
The game can also be streamed via ESPN+ with Mark Martin and Jayden Taylor providing commentary.
Team Stats
USM
APP
FG%
.483
.377
3FG%
.429
.310
FT%
.640
.542
RB
49
28
TO
23
15
STL
7
10
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
26
FGM
12
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
12
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
11
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
5
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
Guard
/ Women's BasketballGuard
/ Women's BasketballCenter
/ Women's BasketballGuard
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