HATTIESBURG, Miss. – Tied at 26-26 at halftime, Old Dominion women's basketball outscored Southern Miss 39-29 in the second half as the Monarchs earned a 65-55 road win Thursday night at Reed Green Coliseum.
"We came here understanding that we were going to have to compete, and we had to compete with consistency through physicality," head coach DeLisha Milton-Jones said afterwards. "They are a team that's going to ground and pound you on the inside with their post play. They edged us out in points in the paint by six points, but what I'm very pleased with is our ability to get out and run. We had 17 points in the fast break and then 18 points from our bench. That's clutch for us."
Makayla Dickens shot 4-for-11 from the field, 2-for-6 from beyond the arc and 6-for-8 at the free-throw line to lead the Monarchs (15-9, 7-4 Sun Belt) with 16 points. The Virginia Beach, Virginia native pulled down four rebounds and added two assists and three steals to her totals. Also finishing in double figures was Jada Duckett with 10 points on 5-for-6 shooting from the floor. She also grabbed four boards to go along with a pair of steals. Amari Young and Jordan McLaughlin were next with eight points each and Jatyjia Jones contributed seven points.
ODU scored more points off turnovers (22-12), more fast-break points (17-8) and more points off the bench (18-11). Southern Miss won the battle on the glass (35-26), but also committed more turnovers (23-20). The Monarchs also combined for 16 assists.
"I think that was the difference maker," added Milton-Jones. "Having 16 assists on top of 20 turnovers. Both teams were throwing the ball all over the gym. I would hope that it was our defense was causing them to make the turnovers that they did. On our end it was just too many errant passes. But we were able to convert and not have too many empty possessions. Get good buckets out of them or maybe draw a foul or two here and there on some crucial players and that changed the game for us."
As a team, the Monarchs shot 23-for-46 (.500) from the field, including 7-for-15 (.467) from the perimeter, and 12-for-23 (.522) at the line.
"Yeah, we were talking about that," said Dickens. "We said we needed to start knocking down open shots. I don't think we've done a great job with that, but as the season continues, we're getting better at it."
After the host Golden Eagles (14-8, 7-4) scored the first four points of the game, ODU put together a 6-0 response with baskets from Duckett, Dickens and McLaughlin. Southern Miss converted a pair of free throws to pull even at 8-8 and then retook the lead 10-8 on a Femi Funeus layup, but Jones and Taleah Washington knocked down a pair of three-pointers and Kaye Clark scored a jumper to wrestle back control, 16-10 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, the Golden Eagles jumped ahead 18-16 before a layup from Duckett evened the score yet again. Three balls from Washington and Kaylen Nelson helped create some separation at 24-18, but Southern Miss outscored the Monarchs 8-2 over the final two minutes and the teams went into their locker rooms tied at 26-26.
Down by one at 29-28 in the third, Young and Dickens combined for an 8-0 push that put the Monarchs up 36-29 at the 6:14 mark. The home team was able to get back to within three, 36-33 with 3:42 left in the quarter. The sides traded points before a McLaughlin free throw and a jumper by Jones made it a 46-39 Monarch lead heading into the final 10 minutes.
Southern Miss was unable to trim the ODU lead in the fourth as the Monarchs went up by 10, 54-44 on a McLaughlin charity shot at the 5:14 mark. The Golden Eagles couldn't recover, and ODU held on for the 10-point road victory.
"We never wavered," continued Dickens. "We stuck together and stuck to the game plan. In past games whenever we face a little adversity, that's when we kind of close down. But with this game, it felt like all of us were really on the same page."
The team continues its road swing with a 5:30 p.m. EST game at Arkansas State this Saturday. It will mark ODU's first-ever meeting with the Red Wolves.
Game Notes
- The 10th meeting with Southern Miss, ODU increased its lead in the all-time series to 6-4. The Monarchs have now won four straight against the Golden Eagles.
- It was the 13th double-digit game for Dickens this season and the third for Duckett.
- ODU held Southern Miss' leading scorer under her season average. Domonique Davis entered tonight's game averaging 17.0 points and finished the night with 15.
- ODU also held the Golden Eagles under their scoring average by more than seven points. Southern Miss came into the contest scoring 62.2 points per game.
- The game featured seven ties and seven lead changes.
- ODU held the lead for nearly 31 minutes (30:46), while Southern Miss led for just 2:40.
Monarchs Earn 65-55 Win at Southern Miss Thursday
