Mississippi Valley State 52, AA&M 51
MVSU 03/10/11

The Miss. Valley State Devilette basketball advanced to the semifinal round of the 2011 SWAC Basketball Tournament with a 52-51 decision over the Alabama A&M Bulldogs Thursday evening at the Special Events Center in Garland, Texas.

Ranked number five in the tournament, the Devilettes took an ealy lead in the game before Alabama A&M took control in the first half. With 19 second remaining in the first half, Ka'Neshia Smith made a layup before a Brittney Lakes jumper with one second remaining gave MVSU a 26-25 lead going into intermission.

The two programs traded the momentum and buckets to start the second half until Alabama A&M built a five-point lead, 42-37, with 8:51 left in the second half. MVSU would climb back into the game, but tying the game and taking the lead with five seconds left on a pair of free throws by Smith.

For Alabama A&M (15-14), Brittney Strickland finished with 22 points and two steals.

For Miss. Valley State (14-16), Smith had 15 points, nine rebounds, four assists and four steals. Brittney Lakes finished with 13 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Alia Frank had eight points and a block.

MVSU will now take on tournament number one seed Southern Friday, March 11 at 5:30 pm.