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Teaira McCowan leads Mississippi State basketball over South Carolina Gamecocks

By Ethan Lee

DALLAS, TX - APRIL 02: The Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs mascot 'Bully XXI' looks on during warm ups prior to the game between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs during the championship game of the 2017 NCAA Women's Final Four at American Airlines Center on April 2, 2017 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX - APRIL 02: The Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs mascot 'Bully XXI' looks on during warm ups prior to the game between the South Carolina Gamecocks and the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs during the championship game of the 2017 NCAA Women's Final Four at American Airlines Center on April 2, 2017 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) /
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Vic Schaefer’s Mississippi State basketball team needed a remarkable outing from Teaira McCowan. As a result, the best player in the country played up to her potential.

The South Carolina Gamecocks (12-5 overall, 4-1 SEC) had no answer for Teaira McCowan. But, to be fair, few teams across the country really have the personnel necessary to even slow the star center from the Mississippi State basketball team (17-1 overall, 5-0 SEC), let alone stop her.

And if there was ever a night for McCowan to have an amazing game, this one was it. Vic Schaefer’s Mississippi State basketball team needed someone to step up and the best player on the Bulldogs’ roster (and probably the country) did just that.

After Chloe Bibby went down with a horrendous knee injury and then Anriel Howard was hindered by early foul trouble, McCowan responded in an incredible way. 26 points, 24 rebounds, and a pair of blocks while playing the full 40 minutes of the game is a remarkable feat.

MSU needed just about every single point and rebound from its senior leader to get going.

Early on in this game, the South Carolina Gamecocks gave the Mississippi State Bulldogs some issues.

In what is arguably the greatest women’s basketball rivalry nationwide at the moment, the Gamecocks came to play and hung in close with MSU. The first quarter ended as the Bulldogs barely led and were up 26-23. At half, Mississippi State’s lead sat at 48-43. By the time the third quarter wrapped up, that lead was cut to a single point, 65-64.

Things changed in the fourth quarter, however. The Mississippi State basketball team was completely unstoppable and the South Carolina Gamecocks ran out of steam.

MSU added 24 points up onto the scoreboard in the final frame. South Carolina mustered just 10. The game ended as the Bulldogs won 89-74.

McCowan wasn’t the only MSU player to have a great game. Jordan Danberry was remarkable, scoring 20 points, dishing out 7 assists, and also getting 6 rebounds. Her gutty performance helped the Bulldogs come out on top of this thrilling game.

All stats via ESPN.com

Next. Marcus Murphy shouldn't have to worry about the NCAA. dark

Now, Vic Schaefer and his team get to take a nice week off. Mississippi State will return to action against the Florida Gators down in Gainesville next Thursday at 6:00 p.m.

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