CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College women's basketball team completed the regular-season sweep as it outdueled the University of West Alabama, 53-49, on Thursday, Feb. 8 inside A.E. Wood Coliseum. MC improved to 9-12 on the season and 8-10 in the Gulf South Conference. UWA fell to 5-17 and 4-14 in league play.
 
A trio of Choctaws scored in double figures led by Amelia Bell with 18 points. It marks the fourth consecutive game with 10-plus points for the O'Fallon, Ill., native, the eighth of the season and her career 23rd. Bell also tied for tops on the team on the glass with six rebounds.
 
Karly Ivy added 14 points while Kyiah Julian rounded out the double-digit scorers with 13. Julian matched Bell with six boards alongside Keller Bigham. The rebound total was one off a season-high for both Julian and Bigham.
 
MC shot 38.3 percent from the floor, including a 41.2 clip from behind the arc. The Blue and Gold struggled from the charity stripe as it went 10-for-24. The unit combined for 40 rebounds in the game, the fifth time the squad has reached 40-or-more boards in game. All five came in GSC action and two against the Tigers.
 
Maryanna Logsdon paced the Red and White with 14 points while Kamille Clark pulled down eight rebounds. UWA shot 37.3 percent from the field, but was just 3-for-14 from the 3-point line. It managed a 53.3 clip from the free-throw line and totaled 32 rebounds.
 
The Choctaws forced the Tigers into 16 turnovers and converted the miscues into 25 points on the offensive end, which proved vital in the contest.
 
The Blue and Gold held a 26-20 advantage at the intermission as it held the visitors from the Yellowhammer State to eight points in the second stanza. A hard-fought, third period saw both teams hold each other to single-digit, scoring totals, but the Choctaws maintained their advantage heading into the final 10 minutes of action.
 
MC grabbed a double-digit lead with over four minutes to play as Bell converted on an old-fashioned, 3-point play. UWA nipped the lead back to single digits five ticks later, but Nia Coleman gave the Choctaws their largest lead of the game with 3:48 remaining as she drove the lane for two of the teams' 18 points in the paint. The Red and White chipped away, but couldn't overcome the early deficit.
 
Mississippi College returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 10 as it hosts the University of Alabama in Huntsville. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
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