Mixon, Thompson lift Wallace State women’s basketball past Cleveland State

HANCEVILLE, ALA. – Kaneisha Mixon scored 10 of her season-high 16 points in the second half, BreAnna Thompson added 13 points and Wallace State’s women’s basketball team prevailed 64-58 over Cleveland (Tenn.) State at Tom Drake Coliseum on Wednesday night.
Wallace State (6-1) showcased the depth on its roster against the Lady Cougars. Wallace State’s starting point guard Sydney Houston was out because of an illness and Morgan Smith, the Lady Lions’ leading scorer, was limited as well after recovering from strep throat.
Mixon and Jada Dale, who both came off the bench Wednesday, picked up the slack in the backcourt and Thompson flourished in the paint, less than two weeks removed from another All-Region season with the Wallace State conference champion volleyball team.
“Kaniesha and Jada did a great job of being aggressive and playing well on both ends of the court. We were missing about 30 minutes out there from our starters, but those two did a great job of forcing turnovers and knocking down some shots. BreAnna coming back for us from volleyball has been huge as well. She gives us a lot of depth in the post,” said Wallace State coach Ron Burdette. “I thought the entire team did a great job of stepping up in the absence of some of our starters.”
Sophomore Haven Albright added 10 points for Wallace State and Dale scored seven.
Wallace State stormed out to 18-7 lead halfway through the first half, earning its first double-digit lead after Dale picked off a Cleveland State pass and converted it into an uncontested layup.
Hannah Vest’s 3-pointer with 7:07 left in the first extended the Lady Lions lead to 24-11. They led 33-22 at the break.
Less than five minutes into the second half, Dale and Mixon accounted for 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to give Wallace State a 44-31 cushion.
Cleveland State chipped its deficit down to single digits with 4:23 remaining in the game, but Mixon responded with another 3-pointer for a 59-49 lead with four minutes left.
Cleveland State didn’t go away quietly, making it 63-58 with 1:02 left after Mesha Mosley, who led the team with 14 points, hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key.
Wallace State’s defense buckled down over the final minute, icing the game with stops on three possessions.
“The one thing we need to do better is put teams away. We let Cleveland State hang around and hang around and they had a chance to the end,” Burdette said. “Overall, I’m very pleased. We are a couple of votes shy of being ranked nationally, and all of the things they are working hard to accomplish are starting to pay off.”
Wallace State travels to Andalusia on Saturday to play L.B. Wallace at 2 p.m.
For more information about Wallace State athletics, visit wallacestate.edu.