No. 14 Mississippi State tops Arkansas 72-57

Jan 9, 2015, 09:23 am

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Victoria Vivians scored 21 points and No. 14 Mississippi State extended its school-record best start by topping pesky Arkansas 72-57 on Thursday.

The Razorbacks (10-5, 0-3 SEC) led most of the first half and Calli Berna's three-quarter court shot as time expired gave them a 40-37 advantage at the break.

Mississippi State (18-0, 3-0) fought back to tie at 49 with 12:11 left and the teams traded the lead until the Bulldogs went ahead 56-55 on a pair of free throws by Vivians with 6:20 left. Vivians later made a layup and two from the line to extend the margin to nine and Arkansas went cold, missing its final nine shots over the last 7:54.

Breanna Richardson and Morgan William had 11 points apiece off the bench.

Kelsey Brooks had 16 points for Arkansas. Berna finished with 12 points and eight boards and Melissa Wolff had 10 points.