Lockdown: Jags Dominate Valley

On February 17, the Lady Jags faced off against Mississippi Valley State. Southern came into the game fresh off a win against Arkansas-Pine Bluff two nights earlier. MVSU came into the game with a loss in their previous contest against Alcorn State. 
In the first quarter, Southern began the game at a very intense pace. They took a very high volume of shots to control the tempo of the game. Another key of the first quarter was their ability to defend the basket, holding MVSU to just 30.8% from the field. The second quarter was more of the same, as the Lady Jags never took their foot off the pedal. Their offense took a leap, improving their shooting percentage from 35 to a hot 50% for the second quarter. 
The first half of the game was a runaway for Southern. At one point, they led by as many as 17 points. Offensively, they were led by freshman center Raven White and sophomore forward Amani McWain. They both finished the first half with nine points each. Defensively, they held MVSU to a lackluster 29.6% from the field. Also, Southern was able to score 14 points off of Valley’s 13 turnovers. 
As the third quarter began, the Lady Jags seemed to just continue to light up the scoreboard. At one point they led by as many as 33 points. They shot 60% percent from the field and seemed to show no signs of slowing down. On defense, it was much of the same as they contained Valley’s offense to just 20% shooting. 
The fourth quarter was much of the same for Southern as they never let up on their opponent. Throughout the game, the Lady Jags just asserted their will from tip-off. Which led them to a resounding win. They were led in scoring by Junior guard Alyric Scott who had 14 points. “Alyric stepped it up” echoed coach Funchess. 
“We gotta be prepared and ready to play our best basketball,” said Head Coach Carlos Funchess following the game. The next matchup for Southern will be away at Alabama State, the first of two games in Alabama  as they will face Alabama A&M the following Monday. Coach Funchess spoke glowingly about his team’s execution in road games. “I feel like they play a little bit better on the road because they can get their homework done early and focus on basketball.”