2008 Woodie Awards
Carolina hosts Bulldogs
Women's basketball looks to bounce back after loss to Auburn
Meredith Smith
Issue date: 2/21/08 Section: Sports
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Mississippi State (15-11, 3-8 SEC) lost on Sunday to Georgia 60-56.
The Gamecocks (13-12 overall, 2-8 SEC) suffered an 83-72 loss on Sunday at Auburn, but are 11-4 when playing at home. The Mississippi State Bulldogs however are 4-5 when playing on the road.
"We're getting better. The team has a great attitude," said USC coach Susan Walvius after the team's practice on Tuesday. "We have faced a lot of adversity this season because of injuries, and there are a lot of times when we have four freshmen on the floor at a time. But we're looking to get better."
Junior forward Demetress Adams scored a season-high 17 points on Sunday, with all but 4 points being scored in the second half. She is the second-highest scorer for the Gamecocks averaging 11.3 points per game. Adams has a 54.9 percent field goal shooting percentage and averages 9 rebounds per game. She also leads the team in steals with a total of 59 for the season.
South Carolina's leading scorer is Jordan Jones. A freshman guard, Jones averages 12.2 points per game, and scored 12 in the game against Auburn on Sunday.
"Mississippi State is very quick," said Walvius. "The game last year came down to overtime, and they have everybody back from last year. They are a very aggressive team. They like to post up guards, which is different."
One such guard for Mississippi State is junior Marneshia Richard. In Sunday's game at Georgia, Richard scored 15 points. Richard averages 9.5 points per game and shoots 40.2 percent from the field. Richard leads Mississippi State in steals with 50 at this point in the season.
Sophomore forward Tysheka Grimes scored 9 points, but hit 7-of-8 free throws. She also had 6 rebounds and five of the team's nine steals, a career-high for her. She averages 11.6 points per game, making her tied for leading scorer along with sophomore guard Alexis Rack.
Mississippi State's free-throw shooting is what kept them alive in the game against Georgia. The team was 16-17 in free throws in their last outing. South Carolina on the other hand was only 8 for 15 when it came to free throws against Auburn.
"We were shooting 50 percent from the floor against Auburn," said Walvius. "We outscored Auburn. We just need to work on limiting fouls."
South Carolina and Mississippi State split the 2006-2007 series. The Gamecocks lost the first meeting but won the second. The two teams will only play each other one time during this regular season.
"We need the students," said Walvius. "There are those students that do come to the games and we encourage them to continue coming. We really appreciate the students who come out to our games and support the team."
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