STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi State stars Victoria Vivians and Morgan William were at their best during the 10th-ranked Bulldogs 79-68 victory over No. 8 Texas on Sunday.That wasnt a surprise. Its what the Bulldogs did without those two on the floor that turned some heads.William scored 23 points and Vivians added 19, but it was a second-quarter run largely led by the teams reserves that helped put the Longhorns away.Our kids, that second quarter, really answered the bell and got after it, Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer said. We got some real critical stops and then we really were attacking the rim.Mississippi State (4-0) pulled away in the second quarter thanks to some valuable minutes from the bench -- especially backup guards Roshunda Johnson and Jazzmun Holmes -- and a suffocating defense that held the Longhorns without a field goal for the final 9:40 of the half.The Bulldogs had a 26-9 advantage in the second quarter to turn a tie game into a 42-25 halftime lead. Johnson had seven points and Holmes added three during the run while Vivians and William were their biggest cheerleaders on the sideline.Everybodys stepped their game up, Vivians said. Everybody can go to the basket. Everyone can score.Texas (1-2) had 15 turnovers in the first half and 24 in the game.We got a little frantic in some situations, Texas coach Karen Aston said.Brooke McCarty led Texas with 19 points, and Ariel Atkins added 18. Texas lost despite shooting a respectable 27 of 56 from the field (48.2 percent) and outrebounded the Bulldogs 36-26.The Longhorns pulled within 48-40 in the third quarter, but couldnt get any closer.There were a whole lot of positives, Aston said. Even the turnovers, most of them were in the first half. We pulled within in eight points, but then we forced some things. Young kids trying to make something happen every possession.William shot 5 of 11 from the field and 13 of 14 from the free-throw line while also adding six rebounds and three steals. Dominique Dillingham added 10 points for the Bulldogs.INSTANT OFFENSEMississippi State played 10 players on Sunday, including nine who were on the roster last season. The only new player was Johnson, a 5-foot-7 junior guard who transferred from Oklahoma State and sat out last season.Shes been excellent so far this season, averaging nearly 12 points per game as a consistent scoring option with the second team off the bench.BIG PICTURETexas: Its been a tough start to the season for Texas, which has now lost two of its first three games. Both of those losses -- against Stanford and Mississippi State -- came against good teams, but they provide ample evidence that the Longhorns have some work to do to be among the nations elite.Mississippi State: The Bulldogs lost to Texas in Austin last season, but won against the Longhorns with relative ease on their home court. Vivians -- who is inarguably the teams best scorer -- had a solid game, but it was the consistent production from others like William, Dillingham, Chinwe Okorie and the bench that was most important for Mississippi State.LIMPING SCHAEFERSchaefer was noticeably limping during the second half of the game, and the coach said he believed it was his due to a case of gout in his feet. Vivians and William had to nearly carry Schaefer into the postgame press conference.UP NEXTTexas: The Longhorns return home to face Northwestern State on Wednesday.Mississippi State: The Bulldogs face Oregon on Friday in the opening round of the Waikiki Beach Marriott Tournament in Honolulu on Friday.----Follow David Brandt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidbrandtAPCheap Rays Jerseys . -- Josh Sterk scored once and set up two more as the Oshawa Generals edged the visiting Belleville Bulls 3-2 on Friday in Ontario Hockey League action. Custom Rays T-shirts . Brazilian national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has confirmed that the veteran goalkeeper is set to join Toronto on loan, saying it will help him be ready for the World Cup. http://www.customraysjersey.com/custom-evan-longoria-jersey-large-72v.html . But by the time the game started, the Toronto Raptors forward felt even worse. And, for three quarters, it showed as Gay shot a woeful three-for-13 from the field. Cheap Custom Rays Jersey . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night. Custom Rays Jersey China . The 18-year-old American had five birdies in her bogey-free round for a 17-under total of 196. Lee held the overnight lead but mixed three birdies with two bogeys for a 70.Two teams coming off road losses 24 hours prior meet Friday night at the Prudential Center, where the New Jersey Devils host the St. Louis Blues.The Devils dropped a 5-2 decision to the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, a game which will be best remembered for irate Montreal goaltender Carey Price pummeling New Jersey forward Kyle Palmieri following a goal-mouth collision late in the first period.Its a hockey play, Palmieri told the teams web site following the game. It is what it is. (Price) was protecting himself. It happens.Though the loss was only New Jerseys first in the past three games, the Devils have struggled the past three weeks. They are 3-8-3 in eleven games since bolting out to a 9-3-3 record to start the season.Thursday marked the eighth time in the last 10 games that the Devils allowed four goals or more, a major reason for their current woes. Goaltending and solid team defense was New Jerseys calling card a year ago, and early this season when the Devils surrendered more than three goals only twice in the first 16 games and held opponents to two or fewer ten times in the same stretch.Cory Schneider gave up five goals on a whopping 49 shots in Thursdays defeat. Keith Kinkaid will get the start in goal Friday when the Devils return home where they own an 8-0-2 mark at the Prudential Center, so far. New Jersey is the NHLs only club not to have lost a single game in regulation on home ice this season; and that 10-game run is the longest in franchise history without a defeat on home ice.Theres a lot we all can do better, Schneider said Thursday. At the same time, we need to regroup and face a good St. Louis team (Friday).Taylor Hall, who scored a goal and added an assist in Montreal, is set to appear in his 400th National Hockey League contest Friday night. In his first season with the Devils after spending thee first six years of his career with the Edmonton Oilers, Hall is averaging better than a point per game (8 goals, 11 assists in 18 games), buoyed by seven points over his last three matches.ddddddddddddew Jersey will host a Blues team that was defeated 3-2 by the surging New York Islanders in Brooklyn on Thursday. However, the Blues have lost only three times since Nov. 15, skating to an 8-2-1 record in their last 11 games.Robby Fabbri continued his recent strong play for the Blues by netting his sixth goal of the season, to go along with an assist, against the Islanders. Fabbri, who went 12 games without a goal to start the season, has recorded five points (2-3-5) in his last five games.We need more from our top-end guys, we cant keep relying on guys like Fabbri and (Jaden) Schwartz to carry the day, Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock said after losing to the Islanders. We need more from other people. Thats the bottom line.Fabbris goal Thursday was assisted by Vladimir Tarasenko, who now has 28 points on the season, tops on the Blues and tied for third-most in the NHL. Kyle Brodziak also scored for the Blues, tying the game, 2-2, in the second period. However, the Blues ultimately fell when New Yorks Anders Lee scored his second goal of the night midway through the third period to break the tie.We left the game to chance, said Brodziak. We didnt really do enough to gain control of the game. Theyre a good team thats playing well, playing with confidence. We have to find a way to gain control earlier in the game and not leave it 50-50 like that.Fridays meeting will be the first this season between the Blues and Devils, who will conclude their season series in a rematch next Thursday in St. Louis. ' ' '