Arkansas Falls to Mississippi State

STARKVILLE, Miss. – The Arkansas women’s basketball team (19-11, 6-9 SEC) was stumped by a slow start, falling to Mississippi State (20-8, 9-6 SEC), 87-73 Arkansas outscored MSU, 43-38 in the second half, but could not overcome the 19-point deficit at halftime. The Razorbacks were led by Samara Spencer’s 25 points.

MSU started the night by scoring the game’s first seven points, going 3-for-3 from the field, in a little over a minute. The Bulldogs kept the momentum, and with 7:17 left in the first quarter, MSU was up, 12-1, while Arkansas was still searching for its first field goal of the night. Out of the timeout, Spencer nailed a 3-pointer for Arkansas’ first field goal of the evening. After Arkansas came within six, MSU went on a 10-0 run to lead, 22-6, with 2:30 left in the first quarter. Arkansas continued to stay in a scoring drought for well over four minutes until Spencer nailed down her second 3-pointer of the game just before the buzzer sounded. Arkansas was in a hole early, down 25-9 after 10 minutes of play.

Makayla Daniels did not waste time to start the second quarter, knocking down a deep triple to make it a 25-12 game with 9:22 left in the frame. As Arkansas was within 11 after two Spencer freebies, MSU went on a 5-0 run. Arkansas did not score a field goal for over four minutes until Maryam Dauda came up with a layup off a third-chance opportunity. Spencer then knocked down a jumper to continue Arkansas’ 4-0 run, but the Bulldogs had the 37-22 lead with 3:58 left in the quarter. Spencer kept up the aggressive play, drawing a foul to the basket to convert a 3-point play. MSU could not miss, knocking down their seventh 3-pointer of the game. Spencer then answered back with a triple of her own. The Bulldogs went on a 5-0 run just as it looked like Arkansas was finding some fire offensively. Arkansas did not score a field goal for the remaining 2:59 of the half to trail, 49-30.

The second half started similar to the first, as MSU scored the first nine points of the second half. Carr drove to the basket for a layup for Arkansas’ first field goal of the second half. Spencer nailed a 3-pointer, but the Razorbacks trailed by 23 with 5:23 left in the third. Arkansas closed out the third quarter strong on a 7-0 run, which was highlighted by a Daniels halfcourt shot at the buzzer. Both teams scored 19 points in the third quarter, as Arkansas was behind 68-49 going into the fourth quarter.

Arkansas started the fourth quarter with an Erynn Barnum and-1. Daniels followed with a layup to spark a 4-0 run in 58 seconds. Mississippi State called a timeout, as Arkansas trailed 68-54. After a Saylor Poffenbarger 3-pointer, Arkansas came within 13 points, down 70-57, with 7:50 left in the game. Arkansas called a timeout, and after that break, MSU nailed a 3-pointer as the shot clock was expiring to go back up by 16. The Razorbacks did not score a field goal for nearly three minutes until Daniels knocked down a 3-pointer and followed with a layup, as the Razorbacks were down by 13, 77-64, with less than four minutes remaining in the game. MSU did not score a field goal for over five minutes, and after a Poffenbarger and-1, Arkansas was down 78-67 with 2:04 left in the game. Mississippi State outscored Arkansas 9-6 in the final two minutes of the game, falling 87-73.