Auburn University’s women’s basketball team will begin its 46th season of Southeastern Conference (SEC) play with a road game against Mississippi State on New Year’s Day. The matchup is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville.
The Auburn Tigers, holding an 11-3 record, enter the SEC opener after three consecutive wins to finish their non-conference schedule. Their latest victory came against Jackson State, where Auburn held the opponent to just 15 points in the second half.
Mississippi State comes into the contest with a 13-1 record and has won nine straight games. The Bulldogs’ most recent win was a 112-54 result over Samford.
Broadcast coverage for the game includes radio commentary by Brit Bowen on ESPN 106.7 FM starting at 6:15 p.m. CT. Fans can also listen via AuburnTigers.com and the Auburn Athletics app, while video streaming will be available through SEC Network+ on the ESPN app or WatchESPN.com.
In their last outing, Mya Petticord matched her season high with 21 points as Auburn secured a 64-48 win over Jackson State. Ja’Mia Harris and Sania Richardson each contributed 12 points, helping Auburn improve its home record to 7-1.
Auburn’s upcoming game presents several opportunities for milestones:
“A win would be Auburn’s first in Starkville since 2014.
It would also mark Auburn’s first victory in an SEC opener since the 2017-18 season.
Additionally, it would be only their second win over Mississippi State in the last four meetings.”
Historically, Auburn leads the all-time series against Mississippi State with a record of 36-28; however, Mississippi State has dominated recent matchups by winning thirteen of the last fourteen games between these teams.
The most recent meeting took place on March 2, 2025, when Mississippi State defeated Auburn 73-66 at Neville Arena. DeYona Gaston scored thirty-three points for Auburn during that game, and Mar’Shaun Bostic recorded a double-double with thirteen points and ten rebounds.
Mississippi State’s only loss this season came against Texas Tech. Both teams share seven common non-conference opponents this year and posted undefeated records against them. The Bulldogs are ranked among the top twenty-five nationally in multiple statistical categories including scoring offense (83.0 points per game), scoring defense (53.8), blocks per game (6.1), field goal percentage (48.3%), field goal percentage defense (33.6%), rebounds per game (46.1), and rebound margin (+15). Favour Nwaedozi leads Mississippi State in both scoring and rebounding averages while Madison Francis leads the SEC in blocked shots per game.
For Auburn, freshman Harissoum Coulibaly averages a team-best of nearly eleven points per game off the bench and was named SEC Freshman of the Week on December 23 after notable performances against Middle Tennessee and Alcorn State. Kaitlyn Duhon stands out defensively with an average of three-and-a-half steals per game—ranking sixth in the SEC—and contributes almost ten points per contest offensively.
Sophomore Khady Leye has averaged just over nine points along with more than five rebounds per game this season while sophomore Syriah Daniels had career highs across multiple categories during her first start at Middle Tennessee.
Senior transfer Mya Petticord continues to lead offensively as well; she averages almost eleven points per game and maintains one of the highest free throw percentages nationally at over ninety-one percent.
Additional contributors include Ja’Mia Harris—who scored double figures early in the season—senior guard A’riel Jackson who notched seventeen points versus Cal, freshman Sania Richardson emerging as a three-point threat off the bench, redshirt freshman Arek Angui achieving her first career double-double earlier this year, senior transfer Angena Belloso from FIU, junior Clara Koulibaly from Gulf Coast State College, junior forward Quanirah Montague who played last season at Mississippi State, and walk-on sophomore Eva Garabadian who joined from Georgia College.
Defensively, “Through games of Dec. 29, Auburn ranks eighth in the SEC and seventeenth nationally in scoring defense,” allowing an average of just under fifty-four points per contest so far this season.
Looking ahead after Thursday’s matchup at Mississippi State, Auburn will return home to face No.23 Tennessee on Sunday January 4th at Neville Arena.
