Mississippi State basketball's Jessika Carter has 3rd straight double-double in win vs Memphis
Mississippi State women’s basketball coach Sam Purcell didn’t waste any time giving his center, Jessika Carter, credit for her recent stretch.
Carter had 17 points and 13 rebounds for her third straight double-double to help the Bulldogs (11-2) hand Memphis its first home loss of the season 81-63 at Elma Roane Fieldhouse on Sunday afternoon. She also had six blocks in the game.
"We’re very fortunate to come out with a win and I’m also very fortunate to coach one of the best post players in the country,” Purcell said.
She had nine points and nine rebounds in the second half and dominated the interior against a shorter Memphis squad. Along with Carter’s big night, Jerkaila Jordan had a team-high 21 points and Debreasha Powe added 14.
"The way they were playing me today, I was getting the ball, passing it to my teammates,” Carter said. “ . . . I just did what I could and played my game.”
That was part of the game plan for Purcell and his team — attack the interior against the Tigers (4-7), who Purcell said posed a threat with their full-court pressure on defense.
"They press you like no other; they get after you in the backcourt,” he said. “But I said the best way to relieve that pressure is make sure we post up when we get to the frontcourt.”
The Bulldogs outscored Memphis 50-24 in the paint and shot just six 3-pointers in the game (making two). And with Carter getting her fifth double-double of the season, he knew he wanted to get his graduate student center into a rhythm and allow the game to go through her.
"For as much effort that Memphis gives and gets after us, it’s nice to have a player that you know you can rely on in crunch time and I thought that was the difference in the game,” Purcell said.
Mississippi State used a fast-paced first quarter to build a 22-13 lead. Though Memphis made runs, getting within five points, the Bulldogs never gave up the lead.
While Memphis had a No. 153 NET ranking entering the game, Purcell knew it wasn’t going to be easy getting a win on the road.
"They had every ounce of our respect,” he said.
Memphis did force 18 turnovers, and committed just 13. It was outrebounded 47-36, but had 21 offensive rebounds, compared to Mississippi State's 11. The difference was Memphis getting just 12 points off its offensive rebounds.
"When you look at the stat sheet and see the 21 (offensive rebounds) and then you look at the second-chance points, you’ll want that stat to be a little bit more, especially when you get that many second-chance opportunities,” Memphis coach Alex Simmons said.
What’s next
Mississippi State continues its nonconference schedule with a trip to Colorado State on Wednesday. The Bulldogs will host Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 29 before opening SEC play against Vanderbilt on Jan. 4.
Memphis’s nonconference schedule is done; it begins American Athletic Conference play against Tulsa on Dec. 30 at Elma Roane Fieldhouse.
Reach Wynston Wilcox at wwilcox@gannett.com and on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @wynstonw__.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Jessika Carter leads Mississippi State basketball to win over Memphis
