North Texas Daily

Matt Brune | Staff Writer 

While sophomore guard Terriell Bradley and senior guard Kelsey Criner broke yet another Southern Mississippi press, senior guard Candice Adams sat in the corner waiting to deliver the dagger three-pointer in the final minute.

The ball eventually found Adams and – just as she has 129 times before – found the bottom of the net. Knowing she just iced the game, Adams left her hand up with her wrist fully extended for the entire crowd to see.

The final minute ticked off the clock and the scoreboard revealed a 75-62 North Texas win. In a game where the Mean Green (6-11, 3-3) shot 56 percent from the field, the win put the team back on track and back in the middle of the standings in Conference USA.

“[I’m] really proud of my team,” head coach Jalie Mitchell said. “We took what they gave us. We shot the ball extremely well today. [I] thought we moved it around well. I just thought we played unselfishly [and] played together.”

North Texas assisted on 16 of its 28 buckets and shot 10-of-19 from beyond the arc in one of their best offensive performances of the season. Senior forward Terra Ellison (15 points), Bradley (15), and Criner (16) were the three players in double-digits, combining to shoot 53.3 percent.

In addition to the strong play from the starters, the bench for North Texas chipped in 16 points between three players.

“It was just a great night and it’s something that I hope continues,” Mitchell said. “I thought the ball movement was what got us the looks that we got.”

Coming off of a rough loss to Rice University, the Mean Green needed to get back to .500 in the conference to regain momentum. The disparity between the two teams came in the three point shooting department, as Southern Miss managed just two three-pointers all night.

That turned into a big plus-24 margin for the Mean Green.

“[Defending the three] was very important, especially towards the end,” Ellison said. “Letting them shoot that low percentage was really good.”

That fast pace was a result of the Golden Eagles’ defensive schemes that involved numerous defenses from a full-court zone press, to a 2-3 zone, to a man-to-man.

The teams combined for 35 turnovers as a result of the electric pace.

“The only negative thing we can say is that I thought we turned it over a little too much against their press,” Mitchell said. “We tried to rush through it at times but ultimately, I thought we handled it and took what they gave us.”

Mitchell was elated at the team’s effort on the night, especially defensively, as she knows this is a team that can put a consistent stretch together.

And if they hope to achieve their ultimate objective, it’s what they will have to do.

“Our goal is to finish at the top of the league,” Mitchell said. “We looked like the team we wanted to be tonight.”

Featured Image: North Texas senior guard Candace Adams (14) drives toward the basket before passing against Southern Mississippi. Adams finished 4-8 behind the arc with 16 points. Colin Mitchell