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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
8-8 (1-3SEC)
South Carolina
10-8 (2-3SEC)
Women's Hoops Falls To South Carolina
1/16/2011 | Women's Basketball
OXFORD, Miss. - Trailing by three with 22 seconds left in overtime, Shae Nelson's three was off the mark as Ole Miss fell to South Carolina 63-58 Sunday in Oxford.
With the loss, Ole Miss fell to 8-8 overall (1-3 SEC) while South Carolina improved to 10-8 overall (2-3 SEC).
In regulation, with the game tied at 52-52, Kayla Melson's runner with three seconds remaining was short as the game went into overtime.
Melson, who entered the game with 995 career points, finished the game with 21 and became the 24th player in Rebel history to record 1,000 career points.
South Carolina jumped out to a quick 18-6 lead with 10:06 to play before baskets on back-to-back possessions from Melson cut the 18-10 with 8:47 remaining.
The Rebels went on an 11-2 run to cut the lead to 25-24 with under 30 seconds to play but South Carolina's Ieasia Walker hit a three at the buzzer to put the Gamecocks up 28-24 at the half.
Melson lead Ole Miss at the half with 10 points while Nikki Byrd scored eight and Valencia McFarland added six. The Rebels shot 44.0 percent from the floor (11-of-25) while the Gamecocks shot 42.3 percent (11-of-26).
A three-point play from McFarland gave Ole Miss its first lead of the game, 33-32, with 13:29 remaining.
South Carolina pushed its lead to 47-39 before the Rebels went on an 8-0 run to take a one-point lead, 48-47, with 3:38 to play.
The game went through four lead changes and one tie over the final 3:22 of the game.
McFarland added 15 and five assists while Pa'Sonna Hope finished with a team-high five boards. For the third straight, the Rebels were outrebounded, with South Carolina ending the game with a 43-29 advantage on the boards.
"We are just a step off but we've got to get ready for our next game," head coach Renee Ladner said. "I'm still proud of the effort and we have to regroup and reload and learn that every possession is critical."
Ole Miss will play at LSU on Thursday at 7 p.m.
