South Carolina drops a top 25 showdown with Mississippi State

Thursday, Jan. 17, 2019

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) -- Teaira McCowan had one of the best nights of her career, finishing with 26 points and 24 rebounds to lead No. 7 Mississippi State past No. 15 South Carolina 89-74 on Thursday night.

Mississippi State (17-1, 5-0) beat the Gamecocks for just the second time in 14 tries dating back to 2011. It was a tight game for most of the night, but the Bulldogs never trailed in the fourth quarter, largely thanks to McCowan's dominant game in the post.

The 6-foot-7 All-American earned her 54th career double-double with one of her best performances. She had 12 offensive rebounds and shot 9 of 15 from the field. She matched South Carolina in rebounding all by herself, 24-24.

Jordan Danberry added 20 points for the Bulldogs.

South Carolina (12-5, 4-1) was led by Te'a Cooper's 27 points. Tyasha Harris added 17. The Gamecocks shot a decent 44 percent from the field and hit 10 3-pointers, but were overwhelmed in the post.

Mississippi State had a 48-43 halftime lead. McCowan had 15 points and nine rebounds for the Bulldogs before the break. Cooper had 16 points for the Gamecocks.