Danberry helps No. 10 Mississippi State beat Marquette

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Jordan Danberry scored 20 points and No. 10 Mississippi State held off a late surge from Marquette to remain unbeaten with a 74-68 victory Monday night.

The Bulldogs (6-0) led by just one at halftime but seemed to take control of the contest late in the third with a 12-0 run that put them ahead, 52-47 with 2:17 left in the quarter.

Marquette, though, stormed right back and after getting a jumper from Jordan King and a 3-pointer from Isabelle Spingola. The Golden Eagles trailed 54-52 heading into the fourth.

The Golden Eagles pulled ahead by five with 5:14 to play before Mississippi State recovered and went on a 9-0 run to take a 65-61 lead with 2:27 to play. The Bulldogs held on from there.

After shooing over 50% in four of their first five games, the Bulldogs connected at just 35.7% against Marquette.

Spingola scored 18 points while King and Selena Lott had 16 each for Marquette (4-2), which hit 50% from the field. The Golden Eagles also made 10 of 20 from behind the 3-point line.

BIG PICTURE

Mississippi State: After handling their first five opponents with relative ease, the Bulldogs faced their biggest test of the season against Marquette. They continued to dominate in the paint and cash in on opponent’s turnovers but will need to shore up their shooting and defense as they get closer to their conference slate.

Marquette: After winning the Big East title last season, Marquette is still establishing an identity under first-year head coach Megan Duffy. Almost knocking off the No. 10 team in the county sure can help accelerate that process — though a victory would look much better on the resume come March.

UP NEXT

Mississippi State heads north of the border for a Thanksgiving matinee against San Francisco at the Greater Victoria Invitational. The Bulldogs will also face either Bowling Green or Wisconsin-Green Bay in the second round of the three-day event.

Marquette will travel west for the Thanksgiving holiday and participate in the St. Mary’s Tournament with a pair of games against the host Gaels and Tulsa on Nov. 29 and 30.

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