Tulsa, Okla. -- Based on statistics alone, Melissa Busby's first game since February went well.

The junior had a team-high 13 points, four steals and a rebound in her season debut for the Missouri State Lady Bears.

But she made just 4 of 15 field goal attempts and 3 of 14 3-pointers as the Lady Bears fell 64-56 to Tulsa in front of 1,294 fans at Reynolds Center on Wednesday.

"They had big kids inside, so we had to hit the outside to open up the inside," Busby said. "We had shots. We just didn't knock them down."

That was an understatement.

The Lady Bears (0-2) attempted 31 3-point shots and made just five. While a handful of those attempts came in a last-second scramble at the end of the game, many of them were the result of a chaotic offense and inability to get the ball inside.

The problem was only exacerbated by the play of the Golden Hurricane's inside players, who blocked nine shots and created several second chances on the offensive end.

"We have zero post presence right now," Lady Bears coach Nyla Milleson said. "Zero post presence, zero discipline on offense, and it's going to be a focus in practice. I've got to find five people who are willing to run an offense."

Golden Hurricane coach Charlene Thomas-Swinson said her team's strong inside game forced the Lady Bears into taking some of their outside shots and contributed to MSU's 29.7 percent field-goal shooting.

Larissa Williams, a 6-foot-3 junior forward, had seven rebounds, 16 points and five blocked shots. Tatum Beer led the Golden Hurricane (2-0) with 18 points, including four free throws in the final 30 seconds to put the game out of reach.

Milleson, on the other hand, said her team's offensive problems stemmed from her players not running the offense correctly. MSU had nine assists and 19 turnovers.

"People have to understand the plays and understand what the focus is," Busby said. "We know what to do. It's just a matter of staying in it."

Milleson made myriad substitutions trying to find a combination of players that would run the team's offense, but none of the lineups worked.

The Lady Bears pulled within one with five minutes left in the game and had the chance to take the lead after a Tiffany Coppage steal, but Jaleshia Roberson missed a quick 3-pointer. The Lady Bears didn't have a shot that could give them the lead again.

The only standout player in the post was senior Jamie Adams, who had three points, four rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal in 16 minutes. Sophomore forward Jacque Griggs said Adams "played her butt off" but added the rest of the team didn't follow her example.

"That's the thing," Griggs said. "It shouldn't be just one person stepping up. We should be doing it as a team."

Griggs was one of three starters to play more than 20 minutes in the game, seniors Coppage and Maggie Dwyer and being the exceptions.

Coppage picked up her fourth foul midway through the second half and sat until the end of the game. She ended up with 19 minutes while Dwyer played 17. Each had five points.

"We'll go back to practice, and we'll see who stands out," Milleson said. "I'm going to guess there's probably going to be a lineup change."