Auburn's conference woes continued Monday night against No.18 Mississippi State as the Tigers fell to the Bulldogs 59-48, dropping their eighth straight game.
"I think we just had a hard time getting open on the wings," Coach Terri Williams-Flournoy said. "We had a lack of proper screening and not cutting hard. A lot of that was the issue. They just have to be better at that. We just can't be denied on the wings and not run our offense. That puts too much pressure on your freshman point guard."
Auburn (9-11,0-7 SEC) did not score until Brandy Montgomery's free throw broke the ice four minutes into regulation.
Although Auburn was able to get out in transition and go on a 15-2 run to build a seven point lead midway through the first half, the Bulldogs' size and defensive pressure in the halfcourt took Auburn out of their rhythm offensively throughout the game.
"We were making shots," Williams-Flournoy said. "We were making stops. I think in that possession Kiani Parker made two steals. We were scoring and we were able to make defensive stops, which means we weren't turning the ball over and we weren't giving up offensive rebounds."
Mississippi State (21-2, 6-2 SEC) scored 13 points off of 23 Auburn turnovers. The Bulldogs bullied the Tigers in the paint, where they scored 32 of their 59 points.
Montgomery netted a game-high 21 points for Auburn in the loss. Neydja Petithomme added 11 points and three assists.
Victoria Vivians led the way for Mississippi State with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Martha Alwal and Breanna Richardson scored 15 points each for the Bulldogs.
Senior guard Hasina Muhammad was not on the bench tonight after being suspended three games by the University. Her defensive presence and athleticism was missed as the Tigers gave up 17 offensive rebounds, leading to 25 second chance points for Mississippi State.
"I missed her a lot," Montgomery said. "She's our leader, she's our senior out there and keeps everybody together. She's at the top and gets us pumped up. We really missed her tonight."
The Tigers are 1-10 this season when scoring less than 60 points. Auburn has not reached the 60-point mark since their 81-44 victory over Florida International on Dec. 29, 2014.
Next up, the Tigers will travel to Fayetteville, Arkansas, in search of their first conference win against the Arkansas Razorbacks in Bud Walton Arena.
"It is something that we need to take care of," Williams-Flournoy said. "We want to win. I don't think it's a lack of effort from my young ladies. They're not trying to go out there and lose. They're playing hard. They're trying. We just got to keep fighting until we get that win. It can't stress us out. We can't stop. We can't give up. We can't quit. We just have to keep going until we get that win."
The game will tip off at 7 p.m. CT on SEC Network.
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