Off the Mat: Bulldogs bounce back and take down No. 10 Oklahoma, 81-77

Less than a week after Mississippi State lost a double-digit lead and were blown out by No. 2 South Carolina, there was some déjà vu for the Bulldogs in the first half against No. 10 Oklahoma.

State had a 14-point advantage disappear and were clinging to a 33-32 lead. State’s star Jerkaila Jordan would take over in the second half scoring 18 of her 24 points and the Bulldogs would rebound and take a 81-77 upset win over No. 10 Oklahoma.

It was the second top 10 win for the Bulldogs in the last two years as Sam Purcell’s team bounced back from two losses of more than 20 points.

“Our word for our game was focus. The first quarter of South Carolina showed you the team you could be, but when the turnovers occurred, we lost focus. I told them if we could stay focused and stay the course, we could make runs,” Purcell said. “Because we stayed the course and stayed focused for four quarters, there’s a reason we got a top 10 win.”

State flips the script on turnovers

During a season where the Bulldogs have struggled mightily with turnovers, it would be the difference in the ball game in a good way on Thursday night.

State turned it over 20 times against South Carolina but had just 11 against Oklahoma, the second lowest total of the season. The defense forced 21 Sooner turnovers and scored 25 points off of those to secure the win.

“You’ve got to protect the ball and make sure you’re not giving a team second chance opportunities,” McPhaul said. “Once we protect the ball we can play fast and the way we want to play.”

After having an early double-digit lead for the second game in a row against a top 10 opponent, Thursday’s game didn’t play out the exact same way for Mississippi State.

The Bulldogs had an 11-point lead against No. 2 South Carolina last Sunday before surrendering a 34-2 run and eventually dropping the game in a blowout. The Bulldogs had a 31-17 lead in the second quarter with 6:59 remaining and then surrendered a 19-2 run to close the half.

Unlike the game against South Carolina, however, MSU recovered and fought.

The Bulldogs put together a 7-0 run to close out the fourth quarter and took a 53-49 lead heading into the fourth. From there, the game went back and forth with the two teams but MSU was able to get critical stops and hit free throws down the stretch to earn the victory.

Jordan led the way for MSU (14-3, 1-2 SEC) with the big second half and was 10-of-17 shooting with six rebounds, four steals and three assists.

“Just staying focused, staying locked in,” Jordan said of her mindset in the second half. “At the end of the game we just all wanted to be on the same page on defense. Third times the charm. We knew that we were going to get one of them with three great opportunities in a row (vs. top 15 teams). Those first two losses we learned from them and came out with the win.”

Eniya Russell scored 12 points and McPhaul had 10 points off the bench. Denim DeShields had nine points and the point guard finished with five steals, four rebounds and two assists in 23 minutes.

For Oklahoma (13-3, 1-2 SEC), Raegan Beers had a double-double with 19 points on 7-of-8 shooting and 10 rebounds. Payton Verhulst scored 15 points and Liz Scott finished with 12 points.  

State didn’t have its best offensive performance but overcame it. The Bulldogs shot just 28-of-71 from the field and just 7-of-26 from 3-point range. Free throws played a critical part in the game with 18-of-23 makes from the line including some big free throws down the stretch from Denim DeShields and Destiney McPhaul.

MSU battled on the boards as well with a 44-39 disadvantage against a physical lineup. Madina Okot led the way for State with 10 boards and she had two big ones in the final minute.

Up Next:

Now that State is back on track, the team will try to build some momentum. MSU will have a battle of the Bulldogs as the team travels to Georgia on Sunday. Game time is 1 p.m. on SEC Network+.

“We’ve got to send a Christmas card to the SEC office because they don’t like me,” Purcell joked. “The first three opponents out the gate, they brought the smoke. If we’re going to sit here and cry, point fingers and not focus, then what are we doing? I thought (Thursday) they played for each other and that’s why we got the job done.”