Women's Basketball 11/26/2013 11:31:00 PM

Kalu Scores 21 In Loss To Mississippi State

Box Score

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Savannah State senior Ezinne Kalu scored a season-high 21 points in a 63-81 loss to Mississippi State on Tuesday evening in the Lady Tigers first of two bouts with Southeastern Conference (SEC) teams at the Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Mississippi.

Joining Kalu in double-digits was freshman Kenyata Hendrix who racked up 17 points. Hendrix went 4-for-8 from the field, while Kalu was 4-for-13 from the field and led both teams from the free-throw line, hitting 13-of-19 attempts.

SSU freshman Tiyonda Davis led the field in rebounds with 12. Bria Dorsey added eight points for the Lady Tigers. SSU was outscored by 17 points in the first half, but fared better in the second period, scoring 30 to MSU's 31.

The Lady Bulldogs had four in double-digits on the night. Kendra Grant led the troupe with 19 points and eight rebounds. Dominique Dillingham added 18 for Mississippi State.

Grant lifted the home team to a 2-1 lead early with back-to-back free-throws. Davis responded with a good layup to give SSU a 3-2 lead.

After a back and forth for the subsequent four minutes, the Lady Bulldogs jumped out to a 10-7 lead behind a jump shot from Katie May. SSU senior Charmaine Greene responded with a good jump shot to end the short run, and cut the home team's lead to 10-9.

MSU's Jerica James opened a 10-0 run, that was capped by a jumper from Dillingham for a 20-9 advantage with 10:46 to play.
SSU managed only four points in the following two minutes as the Lady Bulldogs extended their lead to 29-13. Dorsey sank a jumper with 8:25 to play to cut MSU's lead to 29-15.

The Lady Tigers managed to keep the growing point's margin under 20 for the following five minutes. May sank a 3-pointer with 2:30 to play to lift the Lady Bulldogs to their largest lead of the first half, at 48-28.

In the waning minutes of the opening period, Kalu sank three free-throws and Davis drained a layup in the paint to cut the home team's lead to 50-33 at the half.

Mississippi State shot at a 51.7 percent clip from the field, while SSU managed only 34.5 percent in the first half.

Three minutes into the second half, Grant sank a jump shot to lift MSU to their largest lead of the game, 61-35.

SSU responded with a 6-0 run, behind four points from Kalu that cut the Lady Bulldogs lead to 61-41 with 15:29 to play. The Lady Bulldogs held the 20 plus lead for the subsequent six minutes.

Jasmine Norman sank a layup in the paint with 7:14 to play, cutting the Lady Bulldogs lead to less than 20 points, at 72-53. Kalu hit two good free-throws seconds later for a 72-55 score.

Jazmin Thomas drained a layup with 4:09 to play and Hendrix followed with a good free-throw to get SSU within 16 points of the Lady Bulldogs lead, 61-77, the closest SSU came in the second half.

Down the stretch, MSU outscored SSU 4-2 for the final 18 point margin. SSU outshot the Lady Bulldogs from the field in the second half with a 32.1 percent clip, compared to their 26.5 percent.

The Lady Tigers shot 33.3 percent overall from the field, while Mississippi State shot 38.1 percent. The Lady Bulldogs fared better at the charity strip, going 28-for-33 (84.8%), while SSU went 25-for-35 (71.4%). MSU outrebounded SSU 47-37 in the contest.

SSU continues the 2013-14 march with a trip to South Orange, New Jersey for the middle portion of a 10-game road stretch. The Lady Tigers will play in the Seton Hall Tournament on November 29 and November 30.

They return home on December 29 for a nonconference match against Troy University in Tiger Arena. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.

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