Plum leads Huskies into Sweet 16 matchup with Mississippi State (Mar 21, 2017)
The most prolific scorer in NCAA women's basketball history hopes to extend her college career Friday when Washington faces Mississippi State in the Sweet 16 at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.
Third-seeded Washington (29-5) is led by senior guard Kelsey Plum, who recently became the NCAA all-time women's scoring leader. Plum leads the nation in scoring at 31.7 points per game this season. She is shooting 53.3 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from 3-point range.
Second-seeded Mississippi State (31-4) is led by junior guard Victoria Vivians, who averages 16.1 points per game. Vivians is shooting 37.5 percent overall and 29.2 percent from beyond the arc.
Washington advanced to the Sweet 16 with a 108-82 victory over Oklahoma. Plum scored 38 points.
Plum has been named one of four finalists for the Naismith Player of the Year Award, which is given annually to the nation's most outstanding women's basketball player. She became the first player in Pac-12 history, male or female, to score 3,000 career points.
Plum scored a Pac-12-record 57 points in a win over Utah on Feb. 25, the night she broke the NCAA women's career scoring record previously held by Jackie Stiles.
"You don't do something like this by yourself and I hopefully make that very clear," Plum said. "This is an individual record, but it's broken by a village of people. It's broken by every teammate that I've ever played for, every trainer, doctor, my parents, my sisters, my brother. It's this university. It's the support I've been given. I'm very grateful, but it's not something I take on myself because it's not broken by just me."
Washington is one of five Pac-12 teams to reach the Sweet 16. Stanford, UCLA, Oregon and Oregon State are also vying for a trip to the Elite Eight.
"I just think that our league has gotten so rugged that it prepares you for any type of thing that you could see," Washington coach Mike Neighbors said.
Mississippi State reached the Sweet 16 with a 92-71 victory over DePaul. Blair Schaefer scored 18 points and Jazzmun Holmes had 14.
The Bulldogs are going to the Sweet 16 for the second year in a row and the third time in school history.
"I am really humbled and so proud of my kids today," Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer said. "They played their hearts out. I was proud of their focus on their energy. DePaul is really good. They are so skilled and well-coached.
"We talked to the kids in pregame about who we are and what we are known for. We talked about toughness, resilience and competitive spirit. We talked about not being outworked and not being out-hustled. I thought the kids really responded to that."
