Ole Miss Women’s Basketball Earns Gritty Win Over Georgia in Athens

ATHENS, Ga. – (Release) Ole Miss women’s basketball outlasted a feisty Georgia team, 63-58, to reenter the win column to close out the first month of SEC play at Stegeman Coliseum on Thursday evening.

Madison Scott and Kennedy Todd-Williams demonstrated their veteran status by guiding the Rebels (14-6, 5-3 SEC) to their fourth consecutive win against the Lady Bulldogs (9-13, 1-7 SEC), and their third in a row in Athens. The duo combined for 34 points to lead Ole Miss.

Scott once again had a stat-stuffing evening for the Rebels. The graduate leader dropped 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists, with each of those marks pacing all players in the game. Scott has found serious momentum midway through the conference schedule, as she’s led the team in points for three straight games.

For Scott, it’s her fifth game of the season with at least 10 points, five rebounds and five assists. The Indian Head, Maryland, native was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free throw line, which ties a season-high.

Todd-Williams followed Scott in the scoring effort, adding 15 to the Rebel cause. She drained a trio of 3-pointers in the first half to lead the team in that category. Additionally, she added six rebounds and three assists.

Starr Jacobs incorporated her signature rebounding domination against the Lady Bulldogs, hauling in eight against them. Six of her rebounds came in the second quarter, which tied her own season record for the most in a single quarter by a Rebel this season. She led the Rebels to outrebound the Lady Bulldogs, 40-22, in the game, with four Rebels securing five or more rebounds to help accomplish this.

Defense headlined Ole Miss’ efforts in the early going of the game. The Rebels blockaded the Lady Bulldogs in the first five minutes of the opening period, holding them scoreless in that timeframe.

The Rebels maintained its strong defense for the rest of the half, holding the Lady Bulldogs to 30.4% from the field. The Rebel offense came alive in the second quarter off the backs of Scott and Todd-Williams, who both reached double-digit scoring. The tandem combined for 23 points in the first half, which matched Georgia’s scoring output as a team.

The duo scored from high and low on the Lady Bulldogs, with Todd-Williams knocking down a pair of threes in the quarter. Scott, who has scored the first points for Ole Miss in the past three games, had six points in the paint during the second quarter. She converted a 3-point play in the final minute of the quarter to help set up a 31-23 halftime lead for the Rebels.

Ole Miss put everything together in the third, draining five of its first seven shots in the quarter, which included a pair of threes from KK Deans and Sira Thienou. Scott continued her offensive domination by dishing four assists to go along with another made field goal. Ole Miss built an 11-point lead over Georgia, its largest lead of the game midway through the third.

Ole Miss required a stonewall defense to close the game with a 49-42 lead to start the fourth. The defense, paired with nine Georgia personal fouls leading to 13 free throw attempts, helped seal Ole Miss’ victory. The Rebels made 12 of those free throw attempts, half of which coming from Scott. Deans and Tameiya Sadler made the final four free throws of the game to give Ole Miss its 63-58 victory.

The Rebels will travel north to Nashville for a rematch against No. 23/23 Vanderbilt on Feb. 2.The second installment of the year between the Rebels and Commodores will tipoff at 2 p.m. and will be broadcast on SEC Network+.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics