It's not easy to follow up a season as brilliant as the MSU women's basketball team's run to the national championship game in 2005.
Key players have graduated and inexperienced players are still learning the ropes, but the expectations have been set. In the eyes of many, anything short of another run to the Final Four will be a disappointment.
The Spartans have struggled to meet those lofty expectations so far, namely in an area that was such a strength for the 2005 squad: playing away from Breslin Center.
While the 2005 team lost just four games that were played either on an opponent's court or on a neutral site, this year's team has already dropped five such contests, including two of its first three Big Ten road games.
Despite the team's pitfalls in hostile environments, MSU head coach Joanne P. McCallie said MSU has shown strides of growth, and this season's accomplishments have been overlooked because of last year's success. The Spartans defeated a tough, physical Rutgers team at home and recently overcame a 10-point second-half deficit to beat Wisconsin, 69-63, on the road.
"(The team) didn't even realize — because their expectations are so high — how remarkable that Wisconsin comeback was," McCallie said. "It was sort of like, 'Oh, whatever.' A lot of teams don't come back from 10 points down in six minutes."
The Wisconsin comeback should serve as a motivational tool for the Spartans. They were able to see that they can make a late comeback on the road, and they now realize why they weren't able to make a similar comeback when they fell behind at Minnesota.
"You go back to our game against Wisconsin, and in the last 10 minutes of the second half, we really pulled together and played really well and fought through some adversity," senior forward Liz Shimek said. "We didn't have that against Minnesota — that fight.
"We're moving on, and we're really excited about what's ahead of us."
Junior guard Rene Haynes said the Spartans need to work through the hardships they encounter, learning as much as they can from each game. With a new team still finding its way, it's important to get as much out of every game, win or lose, as possible.
"The challenges are going to come our way everyday," Haynes said. "We have to embrace them and just go after it."
Injuries have played a major role in the Spartans' road struggles. Key players have been battling injuries all season. Freshman forward Aisha Jefferson has been plagued by left shoulder trouble, and junior guard Victoria Lucas-Perry, already recovering from dual ankle sprains, was hurt again in the Minnesota game.
"She fell on her hip, but didn't dislocate it, but snapped the tendon over it," McCallie said. "She's got this snapping motion where she can't accelerate, and she has no lateral movement."
McCallie stressed that injuries come with the territory, and it's something the Spartans will have to work even harder to overcome.
"That's the game, and you've got to play with what you're dealt," she said. "Our deck is not full, and we have to make it full in other ways."
The road woes might keep coming, but the Spartans at least have something to fall back on — their home-court advantage.
MSU has won 22 straight games at Breslin Center. The Spartans don't go back on the road until Jan. 26, so there's plenty of time to rest up and get some momentum back on their side.
