University of Southern Mississippi Athletics
Saturday, January 18
Reed Green Coliseum
2 p.m.
Southern Miss
vs
South Alabama
Photo by: Joe Harper/bgnphoto.com
Southern Miss Celebrates 50 Seasons of Women’s Basketball Tomorrow Against South Alabama
1/17/2025 5:39:00 PM | Women's Basketball
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Southern Miss women's basketball commemorates 50 seasons of organized women's basketball at The University of Southern Mississippi in a day of celebration that begins with the Lady Eagles taking on South Alabama. Tipoff at Reed Green Coliseum is set for 2 p.m. with pregame festivities beginning at 1:50 p.m.
Southern Miss (5-12, 1-5 Sun Belt) looks to snap a five-game skid in league play and to collect its second Sun Belt win this season. South Alabama (4-13, 0-6 Sun Belt) is also looking to snap a streak of its own. The Jaguars' current skid spans seven games with the last South Alabama win coming on Dec. 7 against Faulkner.
The Lady Eagle Courtside Show with Voice of the Lady Eagles Jason Baker begins at 1:30 p.m. Baker will be joined by the legendary Coach Kay James for live in-game coverage on the Southern Miss Sports Network. The game will also be streamed on ESPN+ with Lee Roberts and Larry Boyd on the call. In-app coverage begins at 6 p.m.
Game 18 // Southern Miss (5-12, 1-5 Sun Belt) vs. South Alabama (4-13, 0-6 Sun Belt)
Saturday, January 18, 2025
TV: ESPN+ // Lee Roberts (PxP) and Larry Boyd (Color)
Radio: Southern Miss Sports Network (92.7 FM) // Jason Baker (PxP) and Kay James (Color)
Reed Green Coliseum (8,095) // Hattiesburg, Miss.
About the Jaguars
South Alabama enters the game on a seven-game skid overall and nine-game skid against Division I opponents, last defeating an NCAA team on Nov. 19, 2024, at New Orleans. In their last game, South fell 99-60 at rival Troy before heading to Hattiesburg.
A trio of Jaguars average double-figure scoring efforts, led by Amyria Walker's 11.6 points per game and followed by Rachel Leggett's 11.2 and Daniela Gonzalez' 10.4. South signed eight newcomers to this year's roster that brought back six letterwinners and a redshirt from last season.
The South Alabama Series
The two teams met in Hattiesburg in Southern Miss' first season of organized play on Jan. 15, 1976. Southern Miss took that meeting as well as 10 of the first 11 meetings in the series. After a dormant period in the 1990s, the series was renewed annually in the 2000s.
South Alabama won six straight after resuming the series before Southern Miss broke through again. The Lady Eagles are 25-13 all-time against South Alabama and now meet the Jaguars for the 39th time overall and fifth time as members of the Sun Belt Conference.
Against Alabama Teams
Southern Miss is 110-59 all-time against Alabama programs, playing 10 Division I programs in the state. The Lady Eagles are 73-17 at Reed Green Coliseum against teams from the Yellowhammer State and 36-40 in the state lines of Alabama.
Southern Miss is 32-21 in conference play against Alabama teams, taking on South Alabama (4-0 Sun Belt), Troy (3-1 Sun Belt) and UAB (25-20 Conference USA)
Buckling the Sun Belt
Southern Miss is in its third season of Sun Belt Conference play after joining in 2022-23. With Southern Miss' addition to the league, the Sun Belt now spans 10 contiguous states from West Virginia to Texas. Six members of the league are within 400 miles of Hattiesburg with four less than a 300-mile drive away.
The Lady Eagles are 107-65 all-time against current Sun Belt teams and 40-33 all-time in conference play. Since 2022-23, Southern Miss is 24-18 in Sun Belt Conference games.
Joye Lee-McNelis is the league's longest tenured head coach and is the winningest active head coach in as well.
Leading Her Alma Mater
Joye Lee-McNelis is one of 40 active Division I head coaches currently leading their alma mater in women's basketball. She is one of 26 former women's basketball players currently leading the team she played for as well.
Three's Company
Southern Miss is on pace for a record-setting year beyond the arc. The 2024-25 squad is making an average of 5.71 three-point baskets per game, making them just the second team in the program's history to average more than five three-pointers per game.
Southern Miss' current record average was 5.03 in 2007-08 while Southern Miss made its most three-point baskets in 2014-15 with 178 makes.
#BurgBuilt
Fifth-year center Melyia Grayson is one of 45 players in Division I playing her fifth season at the one school. She entered the year already on the 1,000-point club's roster and has a chance to move into the top 10 by the end of the year.
Grayson also has a chance to move up the charts in multiple records. Against App State, Grayson played her 120th career game at Southern Miss and started her 103rd, moving her into the top 10 in both categories.
She is now tied for seventh in games played (123) and ninth in starts (106). She also ranks top 10 in rebounds (fifth), blocks (third), field goal percentage (seventh), field goals made (eighth) and double-doubles (ninth)
30 Piece
Grayson tied her career high of 32 points at ULM on Jan. 9, collecting 14 rebounds en route to her 24th career double-double and third this season.
The game also moved her from 14th on the all-time scoring charts to 13th, passing Tanya Bullock (1990-94). She is just eight points away from tying Wilhelmina Smith (1981-85) for 12th all-time.
The Tampa Two
Former high school teammates Nyla Jean and Morgan Sieper reunited at the Division I level last season in Hattiesburg with Jean transferring from Georgia State and Sieper signing out of H.B. Plant High School in Tampa, Fla.
The two won the 2021 FHSAA Class 7A State Title with the Plant Panthers where Jean was a senior and Sieper a sophomore. The two started together for the first time in their careers together on Dec. 21, 2023, at Florida Gulf Coast and last season's run in the Postseason WNIT was the first postseason action for the two since their 2021 state title run in Tampa.
The duo has scored in double-figures together in three games this season.
New Year, Newcomers
The 2024-25 season saw Southern Miss sign eight newcomers to their squad. Je'Mya Evans (Mississippi Gulf Coast CC) and Samantha Shanks (Connors State) both signed from NJCAA while Bre Sutton transferred from Arkansas State after spending her first two seasons at ULM.
Five freshman – Micah Cooper, Jaime Gallatly, Whitney Hart, Trinity Rowe and Ava Shields – all inked their letters of intent with Southern Miss as well.
Celebrating 50 Seasons of Southern Miss Women's Basketball
The 2024-25 season of Southern Miss Lady Eagle Basketball marks a major milestone for the program and for The University of Southern Mississippi as the women's basketball program celebrates its 50th season of competition. Following the adoption of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Southern Miss added women's basketball and women's tennis as official athletic programs beginning in the 1975-76 season. Since then, the Lady Eagles have laid out five decades of excellence on and off the court. To celebrate this golden jubilee, Southern Miss women's basketball will host its 50th Season Celebration and Reunion on Saturday, January 18, against South Alabama at Reed Green Coliseum.
Follow The Lady Eagles
Follow the Lady Eagles on Twitter (@SouthernMissWBB), Instagram (@southernmisswbb) or on Facebook (/SouthernMissWBB) to stay up-to-date on Southern Miss women's basketball. Fans can visit Southern Miss.com or download the Southern Miss GameDay app to see full schedules, releases and more.
Southern Miss (5-12, 1-5 Sun Belt) looks to snap a five-game skid in league play and to collect its second Sun Belt win this season. South Alabama (4-13, 0-6 Sun Belt) is also looking to snap a streak of its own. The Jaguars' current skid spans seven games with the last South Alabama win coming on Dec. 7 against Faulkner.
The Lady Eagle Courtside Show with Voice of the Lady Eagles Jason Baker begins at 1:30 p.m. Baker will be joined by the legendary Coach Kay James for live in-game coverage on the Southern Miss Sports Network. The game will also be streamed on ESPN+ with Lee Roberts and Larry Boyd on the call. In-app coverage begins at 6 p.m.
Game 18 // Southern Miss (5-12, 1-5 Sun Belt) vs. South Alabama (4-13, 0-6 Sun Belt)
Saturday, January 18, 2025
TV: ESPN+ // Lee Roberts (PxP) and Larry Boyd (Color)
Radio: Southern Miss Sports Network (92.7 FM) // Jason Baker (PxP) and Kay James (Color)
Reed Green Coliseum (8,095) // Hattiesburg, Miss.
About the Jaguars
South Alabama enters the game on a seven-game skid overall and nine-game skid against Division I opponents, last defeating an NCAA team on Nov. 19, 2024, at New Orleans. In their last game, South fell 99-60 at rival Troy before heading to Hattiesburg.
A trio of Jaguars average double-figure scoring efforts, led by Amyria Walker's 11.6 points per game and followed by Rachel Leggett's 11.2 and Daniela Gonzalez' 10.4. South signed eight newcomers to this year's roster that brought back six letterwinners and a redshirt from last season.
The South Alabama Series
The two teams met in Hattiesburg in Southern Miss' first season of organized play on Jan. 15, 1976. Southern Miss took that meeting as well as 10 of the first 11 meetings in the series. After a dormant period in the 1990s, the series was renewed annually in the 2000s.
South Alabama won six straight after resuming the series before Southern Miss broke through again. The Lady Eagles are 25-13 all-time against South Alabama and now meet the Jaguars for the 39th time overall and fifth time as members of the Sun Belt Conference.
Against Alabama Teams
Southern Miss is 110-59 all-time against Alabama programs, playing 10 Division I programs in the state. The Lady Eagles are 73-17 at Reed Green Coliseum against teams from the Yellowhammer State and 36-40 in the state lines of Alabama.
Southern Miss is 32-21 in conference play against Alabama teams, taking on South Alabama (4-0 Sun Belt), Troy (3-1 Sun Belt) and UAB (25-20 Conference USA)
Buckling the Sun Belt
Southern Miss is in its third season of Sun Belt Conference play after joining in 2022-23. With Southern Miss' addition to the league, the Sun Belt now spans 10 contiguous states from West Virginia to Texas. Six members of the league are within 400 miles of Hattiesburg with four less than a 300-mile drive away.
The Lady Eagles are 107-65 all-time against current Sun Belt teams and 40-33 all-time in conference play. Since 2022-23, Southern Miss is 24-18 in Sun Belt Conference games.
Joye Lee-McNelis is the league's longest tenured head coach and is the winningest active head coach in as well.
Leading Her Alma Mater
Joye Lee-McNelis is one of 40 active Division I head coaches currently leading their alma mater in women's basketball. She is one of 26 former women's basketball players currently leading the team she played for as well.
Three's Company
Southern Miss is on pace for a record-setting year beyond the arc. The 2024-25 squad is making an average of 5.71 three-point baskets per game, making them just the second team in the program's history to average more than five three-pointers per game.
Southern Miss' current record average was 5.03 in 2007-08 while Southern Miss made its most three-point baskets in 2014-15 with 178 makes.
#BurgBuilt
Fifth-year center Melyia Grayson is one of 45 players in Division I playing her fifth season at the one school. She entered the year already on the 1,000-point club's roster and has a chance to move into the top 10 by the end of the year.
Grayson also has a chance to move up the charts in multiple records. Against App State, Grayson played her 120th career game at Southern Miss and started her 103rd, moving her into the top 10 in both categories.
She is now tied for seventh in games played (123) and ninth in starts (106). She also ranks top 10 in rebounds (fifth), blocks (third), field goal percentage (seventh), field goals made (eighth) and double-doubles (ninth)
30 Piece
Grayson tied her career high of 32 points at ULM on Jan. 9, collecting 14 rebounds en route to her 24th career double-double and third this season.
The game also moved her from 14th on the all-time scoring charts to 13th, passing Tanya Bullock (1990-94). She is just eight points away from tying Wilhelmina Smith (1981-85) for 12th all-time.
The Tampa Two
Former high school teammates Nyla Jean and Morgan Sieper reunited at the Division I level last season in Hattiesburg with Jean transferring from Georgia State and Sieper signing out of H.B. Plant High School in Tampa, Fla.
The two won the 2021 FHSAA Class 7A State Title with the Plant Panthers where Jean was a senior and Sieper a sophomore. The two started together for the first time in their careers together on Dec. 21, 2023, at Florida Gulf Coast and last season's run in the Postseason WNIT was the first postseason action for the two since their 2021 state title run in Tampa.
The duo has scored in double-figures together in three games this season.
New Year, Newcomers
The 2024-25 season saw Southern Miss sign eight newcomers to their squad. Je'Mya Evans (Mississippi Gulf Coast CC) and Samantha Shanks (Connors State) both signed from NJCAA while Bre Sutton transferred from Arkansas State after spending her first two seasons at ULM.
Five freshman – Micah Cooper, Jaime Gallatly, Whitney Hart, Trinity Rowe and Ava Shields – all inked their letters of intent with Southern Miss as well.
Celebrating 50 Seasons of Southern Miss Women's Basketball
The 2024-25 season of Southern Miss Lady Eagle Basketball marks a major milestone for the program and for The University of Southern Mississippi as the women's basketball program celebrates its 50th season of competition. Following the adoption of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Southern Miss added women's basketball and women's tennis as official athletic programs beginning in the 1975-76 season. Since then, the Lady Eagles have laid out five decades of excellence on and off the court. To celebrate this golden jubilee, Southern Miss women's basketball will host its 50th Season Celebration and Reunion on Saturday, January 18, against South Alabama at Reed Green Coliseum.
Follow The Lady Eagles
Follow the Lady Eagles on Twitter (@SouthernMissWBB), Instagram (@southernmisswbb) or on Facebook (/SouthernMissWBB) to stay up-to-date on Southern Miss women's basketball. Fans can visit Southern Miss.com or download the Southern Miss GameDay app to see full schedules, releases and more.
– #McNelisStrong | #SMTTT –
Players Mentioned
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