Wednesday, February 19
Mobile, Ala. / Mitchell Center
7 p.m.
Southern Miss
9-18,4-11Sun Belt
57
at
66
South Alabama
6-20,2-13Sun Belt
1
2
3
4
F
Southern Miss.
13
13
15
16
57
South Alabama
26
10
14
16
66
Photo by: Joe Harper/bgnphoto.com
Lady Eagles Drop Road Contest to South Alabama
2/19/2025 10:00:00 PM | Women's Basketball
MOBILE, Ala. – Melyia Grayson scored 22 points in Southern Miss' 66-57 road loss to South Alabama. Grayson led all scorers, but her efforts were unable to match three Jaguars in double-figures Wednesday night at the Mitchell Center.
Southern Miss (9-18, 4-11 Sun Belt) forced a turnover on the Jaguars' opening possession but failed to score on its first four possessions of the game. In the meantime, South Alabama (6-10, 2-13 Sun Belt) opened up a 6-0 lead in the first three minutes of play before Morgan Sieper (Tampa, Fla.) broke through for the first black & gold points of the night.
The Lady Eagles were called for four fouls before five minutes wound off the clock as Southern Miss trailed 17-7 at the first quarter media timeout. Out of the time, Micah Cooper (Carrollton, Texas) subbed in and found the basket to give the Lady Eagles momentum. Grayson (Hattiesburg, Miss.) carried the momentum further, forcing a steal and scoring her second basket of the evening on the Lady Eagles' final shot of the first quarter.
South Alabama, though, doubled up the Lady Eagles in the first and led 26-13 entering the second frame. Grayson scored the first points of the second quarter to cut the deficit to 11 before two Jaguar intentional free throws pushed the deficit to 13 once again.
An 8-0 Lady Eagle run cut the game to five points and a 28-23 margin, forcing a Jaguar timeout in the midst of the Southern Miss run. South Alabama stopped the run with a three-point basket of their own. However, the Jaguars made just three baskets in the quarter – two three-point shots and a field goal.
Southern Miss forced seven South Alabama turnovers and won the frame 13-10 to trail 36-26 entering the locker rooms. The Jaguars shot just 3-of-13 from the floor in the frame compared to Southern Miss' 6-of-11 mark.
Coming out of the halftime break, both teams had cold third quarter starts from the floor. South Alabama missed its first five field goal attempts while Southern Miss missed its first two. The home crowd helped South Alabama collect back-to-back baskets to push their advantage to 40-26 and force the Lady Eagles to call a timeout with 7:39 left in the third quarter.
Southern Miss was able to cut into the margin slightly and trailed by nine points going into the fourth quarter thanks to a Trinity Rowe (Pikeville, Ky.) buzzer-beating three-point shot. Grayson scored six of her 22 points of the night in the third quarter alone, but she had saved her best for last.
Grayson scored Southern Miss' first seven points of the fourth quarter, cutting the game to eight points with six minutes left to play. The Jaguars, though, were able to force the Lady Eagles into early foul troubles and rebounded from the late Southern Miss surge.
Through a team effort, South Alabama held off Grayson's 10-point fourth quarter to escape with the victory. The win snaps a seven-game winning streak by the Lady Eagles and is the Jaguars first win over Southern Miss since Nov. 14, 2018.
Grayson led all scorers with 22 points as Southern Miss' only double-figure scorer. Rachel Leggett led a trio of South Alabama double-figure scorers with 19 points.
Up Next
Southern Miss' four-game road trip ends in San Marcos, Texas, as the Lady Eagles take on Texas State on Saturday, Feb. 22. Tipoff at the Strahan Arena is set for 2 p.m. with broadcasts on ESPN+ and the Southern Miss Sports Network.
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 hosted 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 (9-18, 4-11 Sun Belt) forced a turnover on the Jaguars' opening possession but failed to score on its first four possessions of the game. In the meantime, South Alabama (6-10, 2-13 Sun Belt) opened up a 6-0 lead in the first three minutes of play before Morgan Sieper (Tampa, Fla.) broke through for the first black & gold points of the night.
The Lady Eagles were called for four fouls before five minutes wound off the clock as Southern Miss trailed 17-7 at the first quarter media timeout. Out of the time, Micah Cooper (Carrollton, Texas) subbed in and found the basket to give the Lady Eagles momentum. Grayson (Hattiesburg, Miss.) carried the momentum further, forcing a steal and scoring her second basket of the evening on the Lady Eagles' final shot of the first quarter.
South Alabama, though, doubled up the Lady Eagles in the first and led 26-13 entering the second frame. Grayson scored the first points of the second quarter to cut the deficit to 11 before two Jaguar intentional free throws pushed the deficit to 13 once again.
An 8-0 Lady Eagle run cut the game to five points and a 28-23 margin, forcing a Jaguar timeout in the midst of the Southern Miss run. South Alabama stopped the run with a three-point basket of their own. However, the Jaguars made just three baskets in the quarter – two three-point shots and a field goal.
Southern Miss forced seven South Alabama turnovers and won the frame 13-10 to trail 36-26 entering the locker rooms. The Jaguars shot just 3-of-13 from the floor in the frame compared to Southern Miss' 6-of-11 mark.
Coming out of the halftime break, both teams had cold third quarter starts from the floor. South Alabama missed its first five field goal attempts while Southern Miss missed its first two. The home crowd helped South Alabama collect back-to-back baskets to push their advantage to 40-26 and force the Lady Eagles to call a timeout with 7:39 left in the third quarter.
Southern Miss was able to cut into the margin slightly and trailed by nine points going into the fourth quarter thanks to a Trinity Rowe (Pikeville, Ky.) buzzer-beating three-point shot. Grayson scored six of her 22 points of the night in the third quarter alone, but she had saved her best for last.
Grayson scored Southern Miss' first seven points of the fourth quarter, cutting the game to eight points with six minutes left to play. The Jaguars, though, were able to force the Lady Eagles into early foul troubles and rebounded from the late Southern Miss surge.
Through a team effort, South Alabama held off Grayson's 10-point fourth quarter to escape with the victory. The win snaps a seven-game winning streak by the Lady Eagles and is the Jaguars first win over Southern Miss since Nov. 14, 2018.
Grayson led all scorers with 22 points as Southern Miss' only double-figure scorer. Rachel Leggett led a trio of South Alabama double-figure scorers with 19 points.
Up Next
Southern Miss' four-game road trip ends in San Marcos, Texas, as the Lady Eagles take on Texas State on Saturday, Feb. 22. Tipoff at the Strahan Arena is set for 2 p.m. with broadcasts on ESPN+ and the Southern Miss Sports Network.
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 hosted 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 –
Team Stats
USM
USA
FG%
.440
.455
3FG%
.364
.333
FT%
.750
.846
RB
27
34
TO
18
19
STL
11
11
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
22
FGM
8
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
5
FGM
2
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's Basketball
C
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
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