Mary Nixon scored a game-high 16 points Monday night as the South Alabama women’s basketball team overcame 16 first-half turnovers to defeat Tennessee State 59-43 and improve to 2-0.
Balanced Contributions
Nixon made 5 of 12 shots from the field, including 2 of 3 from 3-point range, and went 4 of 6 at the free throw line. Camille Reynolds scored all nine of her points in the first half. Jennifer Johnson added eight points, six of them during a late South Alabama run. Brianna Wright pulled down 11 rebounds, 10 on the defensive end.
Handling the Pressure
Tennessee State, coached by Joe Inman, pressed full court and half court throughout the game, and South Alabama committed 16 turnovers before halftime.
“I give a lot of credit to Tennessee State for making this a really ugly game,” Lady Jaguars head coach Rick Pietri said. “It’s coach (Joe) Inman’s 29th year as a coach in Division I, his third program. He’s won conference championships and been to the NCAA Tournament. With this team, he’s decided they are a relentless pressure team. Full-court, half-court, it doesn’t matter.”
Pietri said his team’s defense kept South Alabama ahead at halftime despite the turnovers.
“One of the fortunate things for us is that we guarded them,” Pietri said. “Even while we were struggling to take care of the ball and struggling to score, we were defending well enough that we could muddle through and still, somehow, be up at halftime.”
He said the Lady Jaguars adjusted after the break, scoring near the basket and from beyond the arc when the Tennessee State press left shooters open. Pietri credited Johnson for her shooting during the second half and Reynolds for keeping the team in the game in the first half.
“We won by 16, but it sure doesn’t feel like it,” Pietri said. “We are 2-0 and we’re moving forward.”
Up Next
South Alabama hosts Southern Miss at 7:05 p.m. Friday at the Mitchell Center. The Lady Jaguars compete in the Sun Belt Conference.
