The SEC women’s basketball title game will be a rematch of the national championship.
No. 1 seed Mississippi State (32-0) will play No. 2 seed South Carolina (25-6) in the SEC championship game at 3:30 p.m. Sunday on ESPN2 at Bridgestone Arena.
They have met in the past two SEC title games and last season’s NCAA final. South Carolina won all three. But Mississippi State has won 32 straight games for the nation’s longest active winning streak, including a 67-53 regular-season win over South Carolina on Feb. 5.
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“We are built for this moment,” Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer said.
In Saturday's semifinals, Mississippi State beat Texas A&M 70-55, and South Carolina defeated Georgia 71-49.
It should be quite a game Sunday. Here are the best and worst from Saturday:
BEST OF THE DAY
Chasing the Lady Vols
Mississippi State extended its nation’s longest active winning streak to 32 games with a win over Texas A&M. The Bulldogs have not lost since falling to South Carolina in the 2017 NCAA title game.
Mississippi State has the second-longest winning streak in SEC history, trailing the Tennessee Lady Vols’ 46-game streak, which spanned two national title seasons in 1997 and 1998. To catch UT, the Bulldogs would have to win this year’s NCAA title and extend it into next season.
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By the way, UT’s 46-game winning streak was ended on Nov. 15, 1998, by Purdue, which featured current Vanderbilt coaches Stephanie White and Kelly Komara as players and Carolyn Peck as coach. Purdue went on to win the national title that season.
'American Idol' teaser
Nashville recording artist Julia Cole sang the national anthem before the Texas A&M-Mississippi State game. She was introduced as a current "American Idol" contestant, meaning she will be part of the show’s return on March 11, this time on ABC.
Cole sang the anthem well. That’s not surprising since she’s done it several times at Houston Astros and Texas Rangers games, according to her official website JuliaColeMusic.com.
But Cole’s Texas roots, and perhaps her Texas A&M allegiance, were hidden from the mostly Mississippi State crowd. Cole wore a maroon sweater as she sang the anthem, but both schools claim a version of that color.
Don't worry, A’ja Wilson is fine
On Friday, three-time SEC Player of the Year A’ja Wilson returned from a one-game absence due to vertigo. She scored 24 points in only 19 minutes as South Carolina beat UT.
On Friday, Wilson stretched her legs a bit more, posting 21 points and 11 rebounds in 27 minutes. It appears she is at full strength to face Mississippi State.
Praise the Lord and go Dawgs
Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer ends every press conference, radio appearance or speaking engagement with the same catchphrase: “Praise the Lord and go Dawgs!”
It’s such a recognizable motto to Mississippi State that fans wear T-shirts featuring the phrase, and #PTLGD is a popular Twitter hashtag around this time of year.
Schaefer has said he doesn’t remember when he first used the phrase, but it preceded his time in Starkville. As an assistant at Texas A&M, he said, “Praise the Lord and gig’em Ags.” And as an assistant at Arkansas, it was “Praise the Lord and go Hogs.” But with Schaefer as head coach, it now belongs to Mississippi State.
Jump rope on pogo sticks
Lakeside Elite, a midstate jump-rope group, wowed the crowd as halftime entertainment. Among the tricks the kids pulled off were double-dutch jumping on pogo sticks, cartwheels over ropes and seated jump-roping.
WORST OF THE DAY
Late press conference
The press conference following the Mississippi State-Texas A&M game started late and did not end until about an hour after the game concluded. By then, the South Carolina-Georgia game was already entering the second quarter.
“I'm sorry for the media having to wait 50 minutes to do this,” Texas A&M coach Gary Blair said. “It will be changed next year because the coaches will make sure it is changed if the SEC is not going to do it, but this is ridiculous. You all should be out watching that other ballgame. If you’ve got no other questions for us, we’re going to go find a good steak or a piece of fish to eat.”
Short but sweet?
Perhaps Mississippi State star Victoria Vivians, who scored a team-high 22 points against Texas A&M, also was eager to finish the press conference. She and teammate Morgan William were each asked the same question.
William gave a 104-word answer. Vivians said, “I agree with Morgan.”
Reach Adam Sparks at asparks@tennessean.com and on Twitter @AdamSparks.
