Vivians scores 21 in No. 16 Mississippi State's 66-61 win

Feb 25, 2016, 10:43 pm

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Victoria Vivians scored 21 points and No. 16 Mississippi State beat Vanderbilt 66-61 on Thursday night, handing the Commodores their eighth straight loss.

Vivians was 9-of-14 shooting for the Bulldogs (23-6, 10-5), who have posted double-digit SEC victories in consecutive seasons for the first time. Morgan William added 15 points and six assists and Dominique Dillingham had 12 points and a game-high eight rebounds. Mississippi State kept its hold on third place with one game remaining.

Rachel Bell had 14 points, Morgan Batey 12 and Marqu'es Webb and Christa Reed 11 each for Vanderbilt (15-13, 4-11), which had won its last five home games against the Bulldogs.

After the Bulldogs missed four consecutive free throws, Rebekah Dahlman's 3-pointer got Vanderbilt within three with 33 seconds left. But the Bulldogs made all eight of their free throws from there, including six from William.

Mississippi took its biggest lead, 46-30, with four minutes left in the third quarter.