JACKSON, Miss. | The Grambling State University women's basketball team fell behind early in the third quarter and could not recover in dropping its second consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) game, falling, 82-70 to Jackson State on Saturday afternoon at the Lee E. Williams Athletic and Assembly Center.
 
Grambling State (7-11 overall, 4-3 SWAC) led 17-12 at the end of one quarter and were tied with Jackson State at 30 at the break. Jackson State 10-6, 5-2) outscored Grambling State, 22-16, in the third and held off a late charge in the fourth to pick up the win.
 
Monisha Neal, who came into the game needing 24 points to reach 1,000 for her collegiate career, finished with a double-double of 16 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Grambling State offense. Jazmin Boyd came off the bench and scored 11 points, including 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. Shakyla Hill registered 11 points, six assists and four boards.
 
Christina Ellis led five Jackson State players in double figures with 18 points, four rebounds, three steals and three assists. Katie Hunt added a double-double of 12 points and 13 boards, while Kawaii Perry recorded 11 points and a pair of assists. Derica Wiggins and Marneisha Hamer each tallied 10 points.
 

.@GSU_TIGERS Fall at Jackson State, Drops Second Straight in SWAC Play -- https://t.co/7vnbnuEdaR #Grambling pic.twitter.com/9dTC8Pdpd4

— KTVE - KARD (@MyArkLaMiss) January 21, 2018

Turning Point
With the game tied at 30 at the half, Jackson State held Grambling State without a bucket from the field for five minutes and used a 12-2 run, capped by a pair of free throws by Wiggins to take a 48-38 lead with 2:29 remaining in the third quarter.
 
Grambling State trimmed the deficit to 50-46 after two free throws by Justice Coleman with five seconds left, but Ellis' jumper at the buzzer gave Jackson State a 52-46 advantage after three quarters.
 
Jackson State pushed the margin to 61-50 after a Hamer layup with 7:48 left, but Grambling State kept fighting back, cutting the deficit to 63-60 after a Coleman layup with 5:03 remaining.
 
That would be as close as Grambling State would get in dropping its second straight game.
 
Inside The Numbers
· Grambling State shot 39.0 percent (23-of-59) from the floor and 76.9 percent (20-of-26) from the free-throw line.
· Jackson State was 31-of-71 (40.3 percent) shooting and 17-of-24 (70.8 percent) from the charity stripe.
· Grambling State finished with 38 rebounds, including 27 on the defensive glass.
· Jackson State tallied 51 rebounds, with 23 coming on the offensive end.
· Grambling State scored 30 points in the paint, 18 bench points, 10 points off turnovers and seven second-chance points.
· Jackson State recorded 35 bench points, 32 points in the paint, 24 points off turnovers and 18 second-chance points.
· There were seven ties and eight lead changes.
 
News & Notes
· Monisha Neal scored eight points and is now eight points shy of reaching 1,000 for her collegiate career.
· For the first time in conference play, Grambling State has dropped two straight games and the last time GSU lost back-to-back SWAC games was Jan. 14 and Jan. 16, 2017 against Texas Southern and Prairie View A&M.
· Grambling State began a three-game SWAC road swing on Saturday at Jackson State and will conclude the trip against Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Jan. 27) and Mississippi Valley State (Jan. 29).
 
Up Next
Grambling State will have a week off before resuming action as GSU will visit Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday, Jan. 27. Tip-off is set for 5 p.m. in Pine Bluff, Ark.
 
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