The No. 18 MSU women’s basketball team (4-1) sailed past Northern Illinois and Kansas State to sweep the Caribbean Challenge.
Offense was key in game one, as the Spartans came out with a bang Wednesday against Northern Illinois. MSU took a 26-1 lead before sealing the deal, 67-40. The Spartans shot 67 percent in the second half. MSU missed one of its 19 free throws all night.
Sophomore center Allyssa DeHaan scored a game-high 17 points in the effort, while freshman forward Kalisha Keane added 15 to the cause. The only thing not connecting offensively for the Spartans throughout the game was 3-point shooting – where they only finished three of 12 attempts, all by senior forward Alisa Wulff.
“Any victory is a good victory,” MSU head coach Suzy Merchant told The Associated Press after the game. “We need to keep working. Our kids played hard. We won the defensive battle on the boards, that was the key.”
The Wildcat matchup proved to be the only test during the weekend for MSU, as the lead was passed back and forth 10 times before the Spartans clinched it in the end, 68-65. Seven points was the largest lead held by either team at any point in the game.
The Spartans dominated Kansas State in the paint with a shooting percentage of 48.9 compared to the Wildcat’s 36.2 percent. DeHaan and Keane contributed 23 and 19 points in the victory, respectively.
MSU returns to the hardwood at 7 p.m. tonight at Delaware State (2-2).
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