Arkansas wins SEC Tournament opener

Mississippi's Shandricka Sessom, left, defends against Arkansas' Calli Berna (11) in the first half of a Southeastern Conference tournament women's NCAA college basketball game in North Little Rock, Ark., Thursday, March 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)
Mississippi's Shandricka Sessom, left, defends against Arkansas' Calli Berna (11) in the first half of a Southeastern Conference tournament women's NCAA college basketball game in North Little Rock, Ark., Thursday, March 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Danny Johnston)

Arkansas snapped a two-game losing streak Thursday at the SEC Tournament in North Little Rock.

Jessica Jackson scored a game-high 25 points and had eight rebounds to lead the Razorbacks to a 72-61 win over Ole Miss at Verizon Arena. Arkansas advanced to play SEC regular season champion South Carolina at noon Friday.

The Razorbacks (17-12) trailed by as many as seven points in the first half, but used a 9-0 run late in the half to take a 29-28 halftime lead.

A 10-0 run in the second half helped Arkansas pull away. The Razorbacks led by as many as 14 points Jackson's 3-pointer with 3:17 remaining.

Ole Miss pulled within nine points multiple times in the closing minutes, but Arkansas made 28 of 35 free throw attempts, including several late to help close the win.

Calli Berna added 14 points and Kelsey Brooks had 13 points for Arkansas. Tia Faleru scored 19 points to lead Ole Miss, while Little Rock native Gracie Frizzell added 11 points.

The Razorbacks won at the SEC Tournament for the first time since beating Ole Miss in 2012. Arkansas won an SEC Tournament game in North Little Rock for the first time in three attempts.

South Carolina (27-2) beat the Razorbacks 73-56 earlier this month. Arkansas is 2-0 this season at Verizon Arena, having also won a game against Oklahoma there in December.

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