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SPRINGFIELD – Jasmine Franklin’s 27th career double-double helped the Missouri State Lady Bears (2-0) to a 56-50 win against North Texas here Sunday at JQH Arena.
Locked in a defensive battle all game, the Lady Bears took advantage of a couple of scoring runs to secure the victory in their home opener against the Mean Green (2-1).
Early in the game, four different Lady Bears scored baskets before allowing North Texas to go on a 7-0 run at the halfway point of the first quarter and take a two-point lead. Despite shooting 35 percent from the field in the first half, Missouri State was able to answer with a 10-0 run to take an eight-point lead with under a minute to go in the first period.
North Texas held the Lady Bears to just eight points and 22 percent shooting from the field in the second quarter to take a 30-28 lead into the break. Franklin led the way for the Lady Bears in the first half with eight points and six rebounds.
The Lady Bears showed their grit and defensive prowess in the second half. After swapping baskets with the Mean Green to start the third quarter, MSU went on an 11-0 run, which was sparked by a Mya Bhinhar three-pointer, to take a game-high 10-point lead with under three minutes to play in the third period.
North Texas had one more run in them, cutting the Lady Bear lead to three points at the halfway point of the final quarter. However, a Brice Calip layup and foul shifted the momentum to the home team one final time. The Lady Bears then locked it down on defense and did not allow a Mean Green field goal over the final 5:09 of the game to improve to 2-0 on the season.
Franklin led Missouri State with 13 points and 15 rebounds on the afternoon to secure her 27th career double-double and 37th career double-figure rebounding game. With two blocks on the afternoon, Franklin moved into the No. 2 spot on MSU’s all-time career blocks list with 110 in her Lady Bear career.
Graduate transfer Mariah White posted another double-digit scoring performance with 10 points to go along with three rebounds, while Mya Bhinhar added nine points, seven rebounds and three steals to help lead the Lady Bears to victory.
The Lady Bears will return to the court at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17 with a trip to Oklahoma State to face the Cowgirls.
Tickets for all home games are available at MissouriStateBears.com or through the Old Missouri Bank box office at JQH Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular office hours.
