PENSACOLA, Fla - Missy Bilderback’s first season as head coach of Southern Miss women’s basketball is over after a 89-72 loss to ULM in the third round of the Sun Belt Tournament.
“Just a tough day,” Bilderback said. “Obviously we are disappointed. This has been an incredibly fun team to coach. I really enjoyed our team this year. Anytime you have a season end, especially with a group of players and people you care about, it makes it tough.”
Bilderback’s Lady Eagles finish the season with a 15-16 overall record and 8-10 in conference. Southern Miss saw Jakayla Johnson make the Sun Belt all-conference second team, leading the Lady Eagles in 15.3 points per game, 41 steals and a 37.4 three-point percentage. She scored in double-figures in 23 contests with three 30-plus point performances in the regular season.
Southern Miss jumped out to an early 19-12 lead in the first quarter without Johnson, who was injured in an earlier sequence of the game. The Lady Eagles held ULM to just 29.4% shooting in the first period and 0-5 from the arc.
But ULM started to heat up and really never let up after the first quarter. The Warhawks ended the first half with a 9-3 run to cut the lead to 41-40. The Warhawks started controlling the glass with 25 rebounds in the first half to just 17 for Southern Miss.
“You have to give credit to ULM,” Bilderback said. “They shot the ball extremely well from the three and I thought their paint presence really hurt us. They had 38 points in the paint and outrebounded us by 17. When those things happen it is tough to win.”
ULM continued its momentum in the second half, knocking down eight three point shots including three from Jazmine Jackson. The Warhawks outscored Southern Miss 49 to 31 in the second half and took the lead for good during a 9-3 run early in the third quarter.
ULM outrebounded the Lady Eagles 44-27 and had 23 second chance points to just three for Southern Miss.
Johnson led all scorers with 25 points in what proved to be the final game of her Lady Eagle career.
“I knew they were going to double me,” Johnson said. “So I tried to find ways to find my teammates and my teammates found ways to find me. I was just ready to make the play and do whatever it took for my team.”
Johnson also reflected on a challenging season that included personal adversity off the court.
“It has been very challenging,” Johnson said. “I lost two family members back-to-back early in the season. I felt like I had a chip on my shoulder. Every night I felt like they had the best seats courtside in heaven and I was playing for them.”
Despite the disappointment of the loss, Bilderback believes the foundation built during her first season will pay dividends moving forward.
“I think when we look back on it we will be really proud of this group,” Bilderback said. “They came in and set a great foundation for our program. They are great people and a joy to coach every day. When you are building a program it is important to set the culture in year one and I am really thankful for the group that came along for the ride with us.”
Even in defeat, the future appears bright for Southern Miss women’s basketball as the program moves forward under Bilderback’s leadership.
