ATHENS, Ga. - Georgia set a season high with 21 steals, including a school record-tying 10 by NCAA leader Sherill Baker, as the No. 13 Lady Bulldogs relied on defense to take an 81-42 victory over Mississippi State on Thursday night.
Tasha Humphrey scored 18 points, and Baker, Cori Chambers and Janese Hardrick each had 15 for Georgia.
Georgia (13-4, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) gained momentum for Sunday's home game against No. 3 Louisiana State with one of its strongest defensive games of the season. Georgia forced 32 turnovers.
Mississippi State (6-12, 1-4) suffered its third consecutive loss - each coming to SEC opponents in the Top 25. It has been held below 50 points in six losses this season.
Amy Reeder led Mississippi State with nine points. Mamie McKinney had eight points and seven rebounds.
Georgia ranks fourth in the nation in scoring but only 195th in scoring defense with its average of 65.8 points allowed per game.
Georgia's defense took the lead in the first half. Mississippi State trailed 28-9 before finally reaching double figures with 6:17 left in the first half. Georgia forced 19 first-half turnovers, swarming the ball with traps.
Georgia had 12 steals in the half, including six by Baker, who averages 5.1 steals per game.
With her second steal, Baker moved past former South Carolina star Jocelyn Penn (1998-2003) for second place on the SEC's all-time list.
Baker has 368 in her career, leaving her only four behind SEC all-time leader Tan White (2001-05) of Mississippi State.
Kedra Holland-Corn (1996) and Adrienne Shuler (1989) also had 10-steal games for Georgia.
After leading 42-17 at halftime, Georgia continued to stretch the lead, outscoring Mississippi State 26-10 in the first 10 minutes of the second half.
Alexis Kendrick's 3-pointer pushed the lead to 41 points at 68-27 at the midpoint of the second half.
A basket later by Baker pushed the lead to 43 points at 74-31.
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) - Georgia set a season high with 21 steals, including a school record-tying 10 by NCAA leader Sherill Baker, as the No. 13 Lady Bulldogs relied on defense to take an 81-42 victory over Mississippi State Thursday night.
Tasha Humphrey scored 18 points and Baker, Cori Chambers and Janese Hardrick each had 15 for Georgia.
Georgia (13-4 overall, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) gained momentum for Sunday's home game against No. 3 Louisiana State with one of its strongest defensive games of the season. Georgia forced 32 turnovers.
Mississippi State (6-12, 1-4) suffered its third straight loss - each coming to SEC opponents in the Top 25. It has been held below 50 points in six losses this season.
Amy Reeder led Mississippi State with nine points. Mamie McKinney had eight points and seven rebounds.
Georgia ranks fourth in the nation in scoring but only 195th in scoring defense with its average of 65.8 points allowed per game.
Georgia's defense took the lead in the first half Thursday night. Mississippi State trailed 28-9 before finally reaching double figures with 6:17 left in the first half. Georgia forced 19 first-half turnovers, swarming the ball with trapping manuvers.
Georgia had 12 steals in the half, including six by Baker, the NCAA leader with 5.1 steals per game.
With her second steal, Baker moved past former South Carolina star Jocelyn Penn (1998-2003) for second place on the SEC's all-time list.
Baker has 368 in her career, leaving her only four behind SEC all-time leader Tan White (2001-05) of Mississippi State.
Kedra Holland-Corn (1996) and Adrienne Shuler (1989) also had 10-steal games for Georgia.
After leading 42-17 at halftime, Georgia continued to stretch the lead, outscoring Mississippi State 26-10 in the first 10 minutes of the second half. Alexis Kendrick's 3-pointer pushed the lead to 41 points at 68-27 at the midpoint of the second half.
A basket by Baker pushed the lead to 43 points at 74-31.
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