This was just an absolute heartbreaker for the Mississippi State women’s basketball squad. Coming off of a terrible loss to Vanderbilt in Nashville, the Bulldogs came back home in hopes of bouncing back against rival LSU. Sadly, the fates would not allow the Bulldogs to pull away in this one. Not only did it take an emotional toll on the women’s squad, it took a physical one as well. Talk to any player who has played in a double-overtime game, in any sport, and you will hear them all say that it is the hardest thing to play through.

LSU was led by Danielle Ballard with the only double-double in the game (28 points, 10 rebounds). She was joined by Raigyne Moncrief (18 points) and DaShawn Harden (13 points) in double figures. The Tigers shot an exact 50% from the field for the game, and 2-7 from beyond the arc. Only one other Tiger player made more than 3 points as Akilah Bethel contributed 7 to the cause.

Mississippi State, for some reason, played without All-SEC senior forward Martha Alwal. After the game, Coach Vic Schaefer said that he held Martha out because they were “taking care of some things in house.” Now read into that what you will, but I sense some disagreement during practice or something of the sort. However, this may have something to do with Alwal’s perceived lack of effort on the court. I have seen Vic Schaefer get onto her about effort many times during the game, and she may have reached his breaking point on it during Vanderbilt.

The Bulldogs had two players in double-figures as Dominique Dillingham had 18 and Jerica James had 16. Dominique is usually viewed as more of a role player and distributor of the ball. This game, however, she became one of the main targets as the Bulldogs struggled to hit in the early stages of the game. The Lady Bulldogs shot only 34.5% from the floor and 7-22 from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs went to line 32 times, and converted 22 of those attempts.

Now it’s time to give credit where credit is due. The fans came out in massive support tonight. If you did not have the pleasure of being able to be inside the Hump, or watch online, then you missed out on the Hump being alive again with 4,727 fans packing the Coliseum. This makes the 6th largest crowd to ever watch a Mississippi State women’s basketball game. The students were out in full force tonight in support of the now 18-2 Bulldogs. When the Bulldogs took the lead, the Hump was shaking and difficult to think in. When a bad foul was called (trust me, there were many), the “Boo”s rained down from the heavens.

The #15 Lady Bulldogs will return to action Sunday at 3:00 PM CST against the Alabama Crimson Tide. The game will be in Humphrey Coliseum, and will be broadcast on SportsSouth. If you haven’t watch these ladies play, then take this Sunday afternoon to do so. I promise you that you will not leave disappointed.