MOBILE, Ala. (1/25/25) – Arkansas State women’s basketball (12-7, 8-1 SBC) was caught in a battle against South Alabama (4-15, 0-8 SBC), but managed to pull away late to secure an 82-71 victory on Saturday afternoon at the Mitchell Center.
 
Three Red Wolves reached double figures, with Zyion Shannon leading the way at 14 while Mimi McCollister and Kennedie Montue netted 10. As a team, A-State shot 28-for-71 (39.4 percent) from the floor and 9-for-32 (28.1 percent) from beyond the arc, scoring 27 points off turnovers and outscoring their opponents 18-4 with second chance opportunities.
 
It was back-and-forth in the opening period as both teams battled to an 8-8 tie over the first 5:12 of action. A three-pointer from Shaunae Brown sparked a 10-2 run that put the Red Wolves ahead by eight, but went into the second quarter ahead 22-17.
 
The Jaguars drained their first three triples to quickly erase the lead, but three free throws from Shannon paired by a layup from Crislyn Rose put A-State back in front. A fourth consecutive three from South Alabama made the score 29-27, but Rose nullified the shot with one of her own.
 
The Scarlet and Black scored eight of the final nine points after tying the game with 3:18 to go. Anna Griffin converted two free throws after being fouled with less than one second left and pushed the lead to 42-38 entering halftime.
 
A-State shot 12-for-36 (33.3 percent) from the floor and 6-for-20 (30 percent) from three-point range in the first half.
 
Shannon opened the second half with back-to-back layups before both teams alternated scores over the first three minutes. Back-to-back three-pointers from the Jaguars closed an eight-point gap to two, and the response from Kyanna Morgan would be met with the seventh triple of the game for South Alabama.
 
Despite the offensive boost, the final five minutes of the penultimate quarter belonged to A-State, outscoring their opponents 14-4 to go into the fourth ahead 67-57.
 
The Scarlet and Black began to pull away with a 9-0 run to start the final period, claiming a 76-57 advantage with 6:18 remaining. The Jaguars scored 14 of the final 20 points beyond that point, but it would not be enough as A-State secured win number eight in conference play.
 
Through nine games, A-State has secured the most wins in Sun Belt play since finishing 8-10 in 2019-20. The Red Wolves now claim sole possession of second place in the conference, sitting one game behind James Madison.
 
NEXT UP
A-State returns home for a showdown with Troy on Thursday, January 30, at 7:00 p.m. inside First National Bank Arena. Listeners can find the game on 95.3/96.9 The Ticket Radio Network while viewers can watch on ESPN+.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For the latest on the A-State women’s basketball program, follow @AStateWB on Twitter/X and @astatewbb on Instagram, while also liking the team’s Facebook page at Facebook.com/RedWolvesWBB.