EAST LANSING-Michigan State women’s basketball continued to cruise through its nonconference schedule Thursday night, beating Eastern Illinois 101-53.  The Spartans record improves to 5-0 as they continue to dominate opponents on both sides of the ball. 

The Spartans got off to yet another hot start, jumping out to an early 7-0 lead and forcing the Panthers to call a timeout.  Senior forward Grace VanSlooten left her mark in the first quarter, scoring nine points and adding two steals.  Sophomore guard Kennedy Blair also made several key plays, but the Panthers hung around, only trailing by six at the end of the quarter. 

Head coach Robyn Fralick expressed displeasure with her team’s defensive performance in the first, but the Spartans rebounded, holding their opponents to just nine second quarter points.  It was VanSlooten, Blair, and senior guard Jayln Brown who made their presence felt.  Jayln Brown would finish the game with 14 points, while VanSlooten had 14 at the half.  

At the half, the Spartans had a 45-28 lead.  The Spartans had 26 points in the paint at half, and had already forced 15 turnovers, something they’ve consistently done well all season.  Depth played a big role in this game, and Fralick had high praise for her players. 

“Depth is a competitive advantage if it’s productive. People at times talk about depth, but there’s one thing to just play people. It’s another thing to play people who are productive, Fralick said. “So, we’ve gotten a lot of good production out of a lot of players. We’ve got to be able to keep that up, because when we do it right, it’s a competitive advantage.” 

The Spartans continued to pull away in the third, outscoring the Panthers 27-10.  VanSlooten had numerous key defensive plays while sophomore forward Juliann Woodard came off the bench and drilled multiple shots from beyond the arc to help pad the lead.   Blair also fought for rebounds, finishing the quarter and the game with 15 rebounds. 

“She has an instinct for the ball, she’s not a watcher, she’s not an observer, she’s always in the mix. And so I think the more you go after, the more you get,”  Fralick said of Blair.  “And we made a big deal about our guards being better rebounders, and she did a great job of that tonight.” 

However, in the fourth, VanSlooten would go down with an injury after a play at the basket and head to the locker room.  She would not return to the game and her status is unknown as of now.  With the game won, Fralick emptied the bench and they didn’t waver.  Woodard and senior guard Abbey Kimball were letting it fly from deep.  Woodard finished the game with 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists.  Woodard, who tore her ACL last winter, had her best performance since returning to the court. 

”It’s been a roller coaster. I think all the ups and downs have been worth it, and just the trust that the coaches have with me and all my teammates, they all have my back no matter the outcome, and they know what I’m capable of,” Woodard said.  “And practice has been hard but they continued to trust me and push me.” 

The Spartans finished the night with 59 bench points, along with 33 points off 27 turnovers.  The Spartans also had 22 second-chance points and dominated the rebound battle 43-27. 

The Spartans’ next game is Sunday at home against Oakland.  Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. ET at the Breslin Center.