Thursday, February 07, 2008

(2) Tennessee 87, Mississippi State 69

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Candace Parker had to be helped off the court after an apparent knee injury during No. 2 Tennessee's 87-69 win over Mississippi State on Thursday night.

Alexis Hornbuckle and Shannon Bobbitt scored 16 points each and the Lady Vols won their 11th win in a row, but the victory -- one of their poorest overall performances of the season -- was further marred by a late injury to Parker, the nation's top player.

The All-American hurt her left knee with 3:09 left in the game. Parker finished with a season-low 11 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.

Tennessee (21-2, 8-0 Southeastern Conference) trailed at halftime for the first time this season and was held without a point for more than 8 minutes midway through the first half as Parker and the Lady Vols struggled to find a rhythm against the collapsing defense of Mississippi State (14-9, 2-6).

It took a 17-4 run out of halftime to erase Mississippi State's 40-33 lead and it wasn't until a 12-2 run fueled by a pair of 3-pointers by Bobbitt during a span of 1:06 midway through the second half that Tennessee put the game away.

Alexis Rack had 32 points off the bench for the Bulldogs, who have never beaten Tennessee in 27 tries. Mississippi State coach Sharon Fanning is now 0-for-32 against Pat Summitt.

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