STARKVILLE – Following back-to-back decisive home victories last week, the Mississippi State women’s basketball team will again hit the road for a matchup against Auburn. This will be the only regular season meeting between the two programs this season. 

 

GAME INFORMATION 

Mississippi State (13-7, 4-4 SEC) vs Auburn (9-11, 1-8 SEC) 

Date: Thursday, Feb. 3 // Time: 7 p.m. CT 

Location: Auburn, Ala. (Auburn Arena) 

Watch: SEC Network+ // Listen: MSU Radio Network (Play-By-Play: Jason Crowder) 

 

Series History 

• Auburn leads the all-time series, 35-25, with a dominant edge when the game is played in Auburn, 20-8. 

• The last meeting between the two programs was in Starkville on Feb. 23, 2021. The Bulldogs walked away with the victory, 81-68. 

• Mississippi State enters the contest on a nine-game winning streak. 

 

SEC Player of the Week 

• Anastasia Hayes earned her first career SEC Player of the Week honor on Tuesday. 

• She earned the honor after a stellar weekend, helping the Bulldogs to a pair of victories over Missouri and Texas A&M. 

• She averaged 23.0 points per game, 6.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds while shooting 52% from the field, 75% from deep and 89% from the charity stripe. 

• Since the start of SEC play, Hayes has been playing on an entirely different level. In eight SEC games this season, Hayes is averaging 21.4 ppg, third-best mark in the SEC, and 3.0 assists per game.  

 

Myah Taylor, All-Time Career Lists 

• With 399 career assists, Taylor jumped from 9th to 7th on the all-time career assists leaderboard at Mississippi State following impressive performances against Missouri (8 assists) and Texas A&M (6 assists). She surpassed Polly Branch (391 assists) and Laura Springer (392 assists). 

• Taylor is just eight assists shy of passing LaCharlotte Smith (406 assists) for 6th on the all-time list. 

• She is 49 assists away from cracking the top 5. There are at minimum nine games remaining, and she is averaging 5.7 assists per game this season. 

• With 180 career steals, Myah is one steal shy of tying Morgan Williams (2015-18) for 10th on the all-time steals list at MSU. In 9th is Nitra Perry (1997-00) with 186, and in 8th is Angela Harris (1997-00) with 189 career steals. 211 career steals would move Taylor into the top 5 all-time. 

 

STATE by the Numbers 

• Mississippi State averages 72.5 points per game, with opponents averaging 64.5 ppg. 

• State is shooting 42% from the floor while opponents shoot 40%. 

• The Bulldogs are averaging just 11.3 turnovers per game while forcing teams to turn the ball over 16.9 times per contest. 

• Anastasia Hayes (18.3 ppg) is leading the Bulldogs in scoring this season, while JerKaila Jordan (13.1 ppg) is also averaging double-digit points.  

 

Get-To-Know Auburn 

• Auburn enters Thursday with an overall record of 9-11 and a 1-8 record in the SEC. 

• Their lone SEC victory to date was last Thursday when they upset No. 4 Tennessee, 71-61. 

• The Tigers are averaging 64.6 ppg and allowing just 62.6 to opponents. 

• They shoot 39% from the field, the same as their opponents, and 27% from behind the arc. 

• They are led by Aicha Coulibaly, who averages 18.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game. She also has 45 steals and 31 assists to her credit this season. 

 

Up Next 

Following its road trip to Auburn, Mississippi State will be home for two games next week. On Thursday, Feb. 10, the Bulldogs will host Florida at 5:30 p.m. before hosting Ole Miss on Sunday, Feb. 13 at 3 p.m. 

 

For the most up-to-date information on the Bulldogs, follow MSU women’s basketball on Twitter, like them on Facebook, and join them on Instagram by searching for “HailStateWBK.