Lady Bears late comeback falls short against LSU

sydney-wilson2

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – The Missouri State women’s basketball team fell to 4-2 on the year following a 58-66 loss to the LSU Tigers (5-1) here Saturday on the final day of the San Juan Shootout.

Missouri State picked up right where it left off in yesterday’s San Juan Shootout opener, knocking down a couple of early three-pointers to jump out to a six point lead on the Tigers. Sydney Wilson was the spark for the Lady Bears early in the game, scoring seven of the team’s first 10 points.

Despite the quick start offensively, the Lady Bears allowed the Tigers to keep it close throughout the entirety of the first half. In the second quarter, LSU used an 11-2 run, beginning with 9:12 on the clock, to extend its lead to 11 points.

MSU then went to work down low and used a layup as well as a couple of shots from the free throw line to cut the lead to nine before the half. At the break, LSU held a 35-26 advantage after holding Missouri State to just 33 percent shooting from the field in the opening half.

Wilson had a game-high 13 points in the first half to pair with three rebounds and two steals at the halfway point.

Coming out of the half, Missouri State turned up the tempo and went on a 12-2 run after allowing a Tiger basket to open the third quarter. The run was sparked by a trio of layups from Lady Bear seniors to cut the LSU lead to just one point with 6:33 remaining in the third period. From that point, both squads swapped baskets, with the Lady Bears trailing by three with 10 minutes remaining.

An early 6-0 run to begin the fourth quarter for LSU was the difference-maker down the stretch. The Lady Bears answered with one final push to cut the lead back to five, but the Tigers were ultimately able to hold steady and leave with the victory.

Wilson led Missouri State with a season-high 19 points to follow up her 16-point performance in yesterday’s win against No. 24 Virginia Tech. Senior Jasmine Franklin recorded her fifth double-double in six games to begin the 2021-22 season with a 13-point, 13-rebound performance against the Tigers.

MSU had three Lady Bears (Wilson, Franklin, Mya Bhinhar) post double-digit scoring efforts and Missouri State won the rebounding battle, 40-37.

Missouri State will return home to take on William Jewell on Friday, Dec. 3 at JQH Arena. First tip is set for 7 p.m.

Tickets for all home games are available at MissouriStateBears.com or through the Old Missouri Bank box office at JQH Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular office hours.

Related Posts

Loading...