ANN ARBOR- No. 21 Michigan State Women’s Basketball handled business against No. 24 Michigan, coming back from a five-point deficit at halftime, beating the Wolverines 88-58. The Spartans are now 17-3 on the season, 7-2 in the Big Ten, and on a five-game win streak.
MSU has won the last three of their matchups against Michigan, and they will meet once again at the Breslin Center on February 9th. Here are some key takeaways from the Spartans dominant win.
Fighting for it
Since the start of the season, improving their rebounding has been one of the main focuses of this Michigan State team.
Graduate guard Julia Ayrault had 18 points and 13 rebounds, and junior forward Grace VanSlooten also put up 18 points with eight rebounds.
“Well, her rebounding, (VanSlooten) was unbelievable, in both halves, her rebounding in the first half really kept us in it when the game was a little bit choppy for us, I thought she got us some really good extra possessions,” said Fralick.
VanSlooten was an asset for the Spartans on the glass, picking up six offensive rebounds and going 8-10 from the field.
“But she did in the second half, and then finished really well, but a big part of that was we moved the ball better and got her in better spots, and then she did a really great job finishing, and she did a great job winning a lot of possessions for us.”
In these types of games, every possession matters. Ayrault also had a team high of three blocks with one steal, and her aggressive style of play was an asset to the Spartans victory.
The comeback
MSU was down five at halftime, and the offense struggled to get good looks due to multiple miscommunications, resulting in 11 turnovers in the first half. Playing in Ann Arbor in front of a crowd of over 10,000, the Spartans needed to make some adjustments if they wanted to keep this close and combat the pressure.
MSU did exactly that and opened the third quarter with a 10-0 run, never looking back. Junior guard Theryn Hallock had a massive second half with 23 points, and her energy is something that sparked the comeback for the entire team.
“She’s electric, and she can change the game so fast, cause she can score so fast,” said Fralick. “She’s a really tough matchup, especially in the open court.”
Sometimes it just takes a minute to get hot, but once they did, the Spartans did not stop cooking
“And then the second half I thought we really made some good adjustments, and our kids played, I thought we played tougher, I thought we played with much more relentless pressure and put together a really good second half.”
What it means to be a Spartan
The rivalry between Michigan and Michigan State is very important to so many people, especially Ayrault and Hallock, who grew up in a family of green and white.
“We all were just saying in the locker room to it was good to hear our fans screaming louder than they were, and we were able to sing our fight song, cause we wanted to represent Michigan State,” said Hallock.
MSU has won the last three of their games against Michigan, and their comeback and resilience today will be remembered in this rivalry’s history.
“This game is just so special, I mean I love rivalries, but I give all the credit to my teammates, they got me open they threw it to me in transition, and they took care of it as well,” said Hallock. “I’m just super proud of it as well to be playing with them, I know I obviously did a good job, but I give a lot of credit to my teammates, and I’m just super proud of our team.”
“They are Spartans,” said Fralick. “Like they feel so much about this game they grew up green like from the minute they were born, and um, it’s special to be part of that right? To feel that it’s not just a game, you prepare, and you think, but there’s a feeling to it, and I think our team played with that feeling.”
No. 21 MSU vs. Oregon will tip off this Thursday at the Breslin Center at 6 p.m.
