CLEMSON, S.C. (SMU) –  The SMU women's basketball program fought to the end but fell on the road 83-54 to Clemson on Thursday inside Littlejohn Coliseum. 

Facing a high-power offense, SMU (8-14, 1-9 ACC) kept pace with Clemson (15-7, 6-4 ACC) in the first half as Zahra King and Anaya Brown led the way, scoring a combined 25 points. The Tigers caught fire from three-point range in the second half as the team made eight of their 12 three-pointers and prevented the Mustangs from getting back in the game.  

SMU shot 33% from the field, made six three-pointers, and turned the ball over only nine times, but were unable to generate consistent momentum throughout the game. The Mustangs forced 14 turnovers and scored 20 points off of them. Clemson shot 49% from the floor and outrebounded SMU 50-24, which resulted in 22 second-chance points.
For the third game in a row, Brown finished one rebound shy of a double-double as she led SMU with 18 points and nine rebounds. Brown also had two steals and a block in the game.

King scored 17 points, her seventh game in a row reaching double figures. She was 7-of-17 from the floor and 3-of-6 from downtown.

Sahnya Jah finished the game with 10 points and three rebounds while Paulina Paris added seven points.

King gave SMU the early lead, knocking down a deep three to start the game. Both teams traded baskets, but the Tigers used back-to-back trips at the line to grab the lead.

Clemson went on a 13-4 run late in the quarter push the lead to double digits. A late three-pointer from King cut it back down to seven at the end of the quarter. Brown had eight points in the period, going 4-for-4 at the line.

Brown reached double figures after hitting a three to start the quarter. Clemson would answer with a 6-0 run, keeping SMU at arm's length. A bucket from Jah cut the lead back down to 11 with under 90 seconds left in the period. The Mustangs trailed 43-31 at the half.

Brown and King led the charge for the Mustangs in the first half, scoring 13 and 12 points, respectively. King was 5-of-8 from the field and 2-of-3 from downtown, while Brown was 3-of-5 on field goal attempts and a perfect 6-of-6 from the line. Clemson dominated the glass, outrebounding the Mustangs by a large margin, which allowed them to score 22 points in the paint in the half as the Tigers also shot 54% from the floor over the first two periods.

Clemson began the third on a 13-3 run, making three straight three-pointers. Clemson, who leads the ACC in three-point attempts per game, caught fire from beyond the arc in the period, going 6-of-11 from downtown, leading by as much as 29. King had five for SMU in the quarter as the Mustangs trailed 25.

The Mustangs kept fighting in the fourth quarter to cut into the Tiger lead, but were not able to get any momentum and go on a run as Clemson kept firing away from long range.

// UP NEXT
The Mustangs will have the weekend off before returning to Moody Coliseum on Thursday, February 5, to host Wake Forest at 6:30 pm CT on ACCNX.  

// OTHER NOTES

• In her first season at SMU, head coach Adia Barnes is now 8-13 and 177-127 overall in her career (10^th season).

// STEALS / TURNOVERS

• SMU ended the game with 5 steals. 
  • SMU entered the game ranked 3^rd in the ACC / 39^th in the NCAA in steals per game (11.0)
  • SMU has now totaled 236 steals this season.
    • Entered the game 3^rd in the ACC in total steals.
• SMU forced 18 turnovers
  • SMU has now forced 392 turnovers this season
    • Entered the game 5^th in the ACC in turnovers forced per game (18.0) and in 6^th in total turnovers forced.

// FIELD GOAL PERCENT

• SMU shot 33% from the field 
  • Zahra King was 7-17 from the floor in the game
    • King entered the game leading all ACC guards in field goal percent (48.1%) and 8^th in the ACC overall.
    • King also entered the game 9^th in the ACC in total field goals made (115), 8^th in total points (310), and 11^th in points per game (14.8)

// FREE THROWS

• SMU was 8-13 from the line
  • Mustangs entered the game ranked 7^th in the ACC in free throw attempts per game (18.2) and 8^th in the ACC in free throws made per game (12.5).

// BENCH POINTS

• SMU had 9 bench points
  • Entered the game 7^th in the ACC in bench points per game (21.4).

// BLOCKS

• SMU had 3 blocks
  • Entered the game 6^th in the ACC / 34^th in the NCAA in blocks per game (4.7)
• Anaya Brown had 1 blocks
  • Brown entered the game ranked 7^th in the ACC in total blocks (31) and 8^th in the ACC in blocks per game (1.42).

// STARTERS  
Starters: Jazzy Gipson (#6, F, Fr.), Zahra King (#2, G, So.), Ayanna Thompson (#1, G, Sr.), Anaya Brown (4, F, Sr.), Sahnya Jah (#11, F, Jr.)