Photo courtesy: FAMU Athletics
Florida A&M’s women’s basketball team suffered a 68-53 loss to the Jackson State Tigers this past Saturday.
FAMU guard, Mide Oriyomi was the leading scorer of the night with 19 points, two steals and eight rebounds. Ahriahna Grizzle followed with eight points, two steals and three rebounds.
Mikyah Mack, forward for the Rattlers, added seven points and four rebounds, while Ivet Subirats tacked on six points, three steals and snatched two rebounds.
Jackson State led early in the first quarter at 7-0 until the Rattlers started a 6-0 run, including a successful free throw and jumper by Oriyomi and a three-pointer by Mac. This brought their deficit to just 7-6 with 6:36 remaining.
The Lady Tigers edged ahead and entered the second quarter with a 19-13 lead.
Forwards Staysha Allen, Eliya Ellis and Mikyah Mack were the stars of the second quarter, delivering a trio of jumpers. Despite their efforts, JSU still managed to widen the gap and FAMU headed into halftime down 33-20.
Florida A&M got active early after halftime, having a 6-0 run and bringing the score to 33-26 with 7:29 remaining in the third quarter. The Lady Tigers did not let up and furthered their lead to enter the fourth quarter at 50-37.
Jackson State continued to stack points in the fourth and ultimately secured the win.
Coach Pillow acknowledged the team’s improvement in light of this season’s hardships.
“I don’t think the process is exactly how I envisioned it, but we have gotten better,” Pillow said. “We haven’t made as big as a jump as I thought we may have, but it’s still in the right direction.”
Mide spoke on how a boost in team chemistry has aided in an overall better performance.
“As the season goes on, we’re getting more comfortable with each other and we’re learning to trust the process,” Mide said. “I feel like anyone who is out there can get in the groove because we’re starting to understand each other’s strengths and rules.”
The Lady Rattlers face their next opponent, Alcorn State, on Feb. 13 at 5:30 p.m.