Kenyan basketball sensation Madina Okot made an impressive debut for her new team – Mississippi State – as they ran past Memphis 100-56 in their 2024-25 season opener inside Humphrey Coliseum on Thursday night.
Okot, who made her long-awaited move to the US in August, was named as a starter for the Bulldogs, before going ahead to post a double-double performance of 14 points and 17 rebounds.
Donning number 15, the center, boasting a team-best 8’ 8” standing reach, was a menace for Memphis in the 25 minutes she played, before her game was interrupted by foul trouble in the third quarter.
She was not the only new face that impressed however, as Graduate student guard Eniya Russell stole the show with a career-high 26 points on 10-15 from the field and 4-8 from three.
Redshirt junior guard Destiney McPhaul filled the stat sheet with 11 points, three assists and three steals, while Junior guard/forward Debreasha Powe posted 16 points behind a 4-8 performance from behind the arc to make it four Bulldogs in double-figures on the night.
The win was only the third time Mississippi State had eclipsed 100 points under Head Coach Sam Purcell, and the second time they did that in a season opener.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early 23-13 lead behind seven points and five rebounds from Okot, and held a 36-25 advantage at halftime after what was a back-and-forth second period.
Mississippi State turned in a 34-point third quarter in which it went 13-19 from the field in the period to extend its lead to 70-44 heading into the final frame.
Russell turned in 12 of her career-high total in the quarter.
Senior forward/center Kayla Thomas buried a pair of free throws to earn Mississippi State its largest lead of 44 points and post the eventual final score with eight seconds left in regulation.
“Man, this team can be special. I honestly didn’t know what to expect because there’s so many new pieces and so many different faces,” coach Purcell said after the win. “I was concerned about a couple of things. Memphis rebounding, we had to keep them off the boards and for us to win 61-33 tells me a lot about my team.”
Mississippi State remains home to take on in-state opponent Alcorn State on Sunday.
