Late Rally Falls Short In SEC Opener
OXFORD, Miss. – The University of Arkansas women’s basketball team rallied late but was unable to complete the fourth-quarter comeback, falling 73-64 to Ole Miss on Sunday afternoon in The Pavilion at Ole Miss.
Trailing by as many as 22 points in the fourth quarter, Arkansas (11-3) went on a 14-0 run over 4:23 to pull within eight, 67-59, with 2:41 left in the game. Arkansas got to within eight on two different occasions in the final three minutes, but they were unable to draw any closer. Erika Sisk hit a key lay-up for the Lady Rebels (12-2) with 2:06 left to end a 5:19 scoring drought.
Keiryn Swenson led all scorers with 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range. Jessica Jackson recorded her second straight double-double, the 15th of her career, with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Jailyn Mason also tallied her second consecutive double-double, finishing with 10 points and 10 assists. Alecia Cooley added 12 points.
Ole Miss held a decisive advantage inside, outrebounding Arkansas 50-33, including 18-6 on the offensive glass. They outscored Arkansas 44-20 in points in the paint. The Lady Rebels outscored the Razorbacks 30-15 in the third quarter, including an 11-0 run in the period.
Arkansas returns home for back-to-back home games, beginning with its SEC home opener against No. 5 Mississippi State on Thursday night with a tip-off set for 7 p.m.
Key Run
After Arkansas had pulled to within two, 34-32, with 8:02 left in the third quarter, Ole Miss answered with a 16-3 run, including 11 straight to end the run, to lead 50-35 with 3:32 left. Ole Miss was 7-of-9 from the floor, while Arkansas was 1-of-8 from the floor during that span.
Notable
• Arkansas saw its two-game win streak against Ole Miss snapped and is now 16-26 all-time against Ole Miss, including 2-16 in games played in Oxford.
• Arkansas is now 4-21 in SEC openers, since joining the league for the 1991-92 season. Arkansas last won an SEC opener during the 2005-06 season.
• Arkansas used the same lineup from its 101-40 win over Houston Baptist on Wednesday: Jailyn Mason, Devin Cosper, Keiryn Swenson, Bailey Zimmerman and Jessica Jackson.
• Arkansas was held to a season low for first-quarter points (8) and tied for a season low for first-half points (26). The 30 points allowed by Arkansas were the most allowed since changing to quarters.
• Arkansas and Ole Miss combined for 53 first-half points, 33.9 percent shooting from the field and 11.1 percent shooting from 3-point range. Both Arkansas (26) and Ole Miss (27) set season lows for first-half points.
• Jessica Jackson has scored in double figures in all 14 games this season, finishing with 11 points, and is averaging a team-best 17.6 points per game.
• Jailyn Mason scored in double figures for the third straight game and recorded a double-double for the second straight game. She has 24 assists and just two turnovers in 109 minutes over the last three games.
• Keiryn Swenson scored in double figures for the seventh time this season, tied for the second-most on the team.
• Alecia Cooley scored in double figures for the third straight game, finishing with 12 points in her second consecutive game off the bench. She has seven games in double figures, tied for the second-most on the team.
• Arkansas was outrebounded 50-33 and outscored 44-20 in points in the paint and 16-6 in second-chance points.
Up Next
Arkansas returns home for back-to-back home games against No. 5 Mississippi State on Thursday and LSU on Jan. 8. The Razorbacks play four of their first seven SEC games at home in Bud Walton Arena.
To order tickets for the 2016-17 season, click here or call the Razorback Ticket Center at 800-982-HOGS (4647) or 479-575-5151.
For more information on Arkansas women’s basketball, follow @RazorbackWBB on Twitter.
