The Reflector

Issue date: 11/16/07 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Daniel Harmon Junior guard Marneshia Richard has gathered 26 points, 11 assists and 12 rebounds through her first two games.

The Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs will look to continue their winning streak when they face the Mercer Bears in a 2 p.m. contest at Humphrey Coliseum.

The Lady Bulldogs defeated the Mercer Bears last season by a score of 50-37. Last season, Mercer finished with a 5-20 record, grabbing four conference victories.

Mercer grabbed two exhibition victories over Louisiana-Lafayette and South Carolina State before dropping their season opener to Florida A&M by a 78-57 score.

The Lady Bears are led by senior guard Erin Keller. Last season, she collected seven rebounds against Mississippi State. She had a total of 208 points scored, 54 rebounds, 13 assists and two steals last season.

The Mercer Lady Bears will be led by their head coach Janell Jones.

"Even though we defeated the Mercer Bears last season, that does not mean that we can just expect that again," Lady Bulldogs head coach Sharon Fanning said. "We still have to practice and be prepared."

Fanning said there were still several improvements to build on as the season progresses.

"We must still play very hard, take the ball, execute and play hard defensively," Fanning said. "All teams play with different techniques. Our game is to apply good pressure and push the ball in. We must also play consistent and hard for the full 40 minutes."

The Lady Bulldogs are also aware that they must play hard and be prepared for the game even though they defeated Mercer last season.

"We must return 100 percent of everybody," junior guard/forward Robin Porter said. "We have to come out prepared and be ready to play Mississippi State basketball."

This will be freshman forward Mary Kathryn Govero's first time to play the Mercer Bears, although she has confidence that the team can pull a win out of this game.

"I've never seen them play, but I have confidence in the team," Govero said. "If we continue working hard we should be about to go out there and take care of business and beat them again."

Govero also said that Fanning has had them focusing on some techniques more than others.

"Coach Fanning has had us working on defense, team defense and plays on offense more than anything else," she said.

Even though it is early in the season, the Lady Bulldogs will go into the contest against Mercer hoping to maintain their undefeated record.

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