HOMEWOOD, Ala. – Jacksonville State women's basketball could not climb out of an early hole in Sunday's 65-51 loss at Samford. The Gamecocks were unable to slow down a ferocious attack and did not catch the breaks needed on the offensive end to secure their second straight victory.
"They're just better than we are right now," head coach
Rick Pietri said. "Samford's got a great team and you've got to give them credit for it. We just have to go back to the drawing board and see what we can do to improve."
Samford's (6-2) impressive offensive attack went to work early against Jax State (3-5). The Bulldogs shot 9-of-18 from the field in the first period and, despite a pair of made threes by the visitors, held an 18-14 lead through one. Pietri's squad bounced back to begin the second period, scoring nine unanswered to take their first lead, but a 16-2 run commenced in favor of the home team. Three treys by Samford's Sadie Stetson proved to be the difference down the stretch as the Bulldogs claimed a 34-25 advantage at the break.
Though the Red-and-White aimed for a quick turnaround in the second half, Stetson immediately nailed a three and added a layup, forcing the Gamecocks to call timeout. Jacksonville State went on to sink five field goals in the interval but could not hinder a Bulldog offense that outscored them 19-13. Jax State never made much headway in cutting into their 53-38 deficit going into the fourth, eventually falling 65-51 at the Pete Hanna Center.
Rachel Johnson had a team-best 12 points on four threes and
Bre'Anna Rhodes added ten points and four rebounds.
Madison McCoy scored a season-high seven points in the loss as well.
The Gamecocks were out-rebounded 42-31 and shot just 31.7% from the field while Samford made 48.1% of their shots and 53.8% of their three-point attempts.
Following a busy past week, Jacksonville State's women will return to play on Dec. 11 at the College of Charleston. That non-conference bout will tip-off at 6 p.m. and it will be broadcast on ESPN+ and the Gamecock Sports Network.
Links to listen, watch, or follow along with live stats for that game will be provided at JaxStateSports.com. In addition, score updates will be posted on Jax State Women's Basketball's X account (@JaxStateWBB).
To stay up-to-date with the Gamecocks, follow their Facebook (Jacksonville State Women's Basketball), Instagram (@JaxStateWBB), and X (@JaxStateWBB) accounts.
