CLEVELAND, Miss. -- Miles gave up the first 10 points of the game and was unable to recover Sunday afternoon in a 60-44 loss to Delta State at Walter Sillers Coliseum. The loss forced a split of the season series between the two teams after the Lady Bears (2-4) defeated the Lady Statesmen (2-5) on Nov. 27.

Miles turned the ball over three times and missed its first two shots and Delta State took advantage. Alondrea Rush nailed two 3-pointers and the Lady Statesmen got two more buckets off turnovers to open a 10-0 lead less than four minutes into the game. The Lady Bears would miss 6-of-8 shots in the opening quarter and trailed 16-6 after the first 10 minutes. But the team's shooting woes would continue into the second quarter, missing the first nine shot attempts before Victoria Sutton scored with 2:22 left before halftime. Miles shot just 21 percent from the field (4-of-19) and trailed 30-14 going into the break.

The Lady Bears played better in the second half but never got closer than 12 points and trailed by as many as 20 points. Jasmine Hollis had 11 points and five rebounds and Sutton added 11 points and four rebounds to pace the Lady Bears. Symone Williams added eight points off the bench for Miles, which plays at West Alabama on Wednesday. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.