The women’s basketball team knows it needs a strong showing in the Big Ten Tournament to prolong the season.
Winning it all in Indianapolis is probably the only way the Spartans (16-11 overall, 6-10 Big Ten) will earn a trip to the NCAA Tournament. Without the automatic bid the Big Ten champ is awarded, MSU probably won’t qualify for the field of 64.
Regardless of future implications, the Spartans are focused solely on the Big Ten Tournament.
“No matter what has happened, we’re ready to play,” said sophomore forward Julie Pagel. “We’re excited for the tournament because this is a whole new season for us.
“Everybody is 0-0 in the Big Ten Tournament and we can go in there and spoil the tournament for a lot of teams being the underdog.”
But, the NCAA Tournament is still the ultimate goal of second year head coach Joanne P. McCallie.
“The mind-set for me and my staff has always been to get to the NCAA Tournament as soon as possible,” McCallie said. “Only then can you compete for championships.”
If the Spartans are not selected for the NCAA Tournament, they are candidates for the National Invitational Tournament.
Either of the tournaments would be a plus for the team, but the NCAA is the desired destination, Pagel said.
“The whole team wants to go,” Pagel said. “Regardless if we have to win two games or the whole Big Ten Tournament, we just want to play as long as we can.
“Not to take anything away from the NIT tournament, but as a team, we have our sights set on the Big Dance and we’re going to keep playing hard until someone says, ‘Stop, your season is over.’”
Junior guard Vnemina Reese said the NCAA is the main goal and the NIT would be a minor letdown.
“We’re ready and prepared and we know that (the Big Ten Tournament) is do or die,” Reese said. “We’re going to give it all we have.
“But as coach put it, the NCAA Tournament is like a prime rib compared to the NIT - a hamburger.”
Every Spartan wants the NCAA Tournament, but not all see the NIT as a bad thing. Junior forward Syreeta Bromfield said the experience would improve the program.
“I don’t think the NIT would be that bad,” Bromfield said. “It’s a big tournament and it will give us big tournament experience for the future.”
The pressure of win or go home isn’t the only problem facing the Spartans. Over the past week, MSU has lost two players. Freshman guard Cortne Ellis was suspended indefinitely on Feb. 20 and freshman forward Joy Johnson withdrew from school on Monday for personal reasons.
The Spartans also have been injury prone all season. Both freshman center Kelli Roehrig and Pagel have been battling lower back pains.
But, McCallie insists the injuries haven’t hampered the Spartans’ play.
“All I have to say is Minnesota,” she said, pointing out MSU’s 80-72 victory on Sunday. “This team has great chemistry right now and the best thing is we can play much better than we did against Minnesota.”
Honored: Junior forward Syreeta Bromfield was named second team All-Big Ten by both coaches and media. She lead the Spartans in scoring and rebounding with 15.9 points and 6.6 rebounds per game.
Freshman guard Kristin Haynie was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team. She set an MSU freshman record with 66 steals, while averaging 7.8 points and 3.4 assists per game.
