With sophomore center Madison Williams out for the third consecutive year with a torn ACL, there is a big gap in the center of the Spartan defense, but Merchant said stopping the opponent from scoring is something this year’s team has focused on.

“We worked quite a bit on one-on-one personal accountability,” Merchant said. “You don’t want to get into complete rotations if you don’t have to. The less help you need, the better off we’re going to be.”

In three games so far this season, MSU has outscored its opponents 200-117, and Merchant said the team is doing a good job of what it sets out to do on the defensive end.

“We’re not a gambling team; we play up in our gaps, so we play a little more of a packed style right now,” she said. “We’re making people shoot outside shots, and (challenging) them. That’s our goal. We’re doing a pretty good job of that.”

With a smaller rotation of players, Merchant said the defense has not been lacking enthusiasm, especially in the case of junior guard Klarissa Bell.

“Klarissa has done a really nice job the last two games,” Merchant said.

“She’s had to guard their best player on the court, and she’s done a good job of keeping that kid in front of her for 35 (or) 40 minutes, whatever the case may be.”

Senior forward Courtney Schiffauer said the staff has done a good job moderating the amount of practice time so the few players who do play aren’t as tired on the floor.

“They’re people who work hard and will keep going through fatigue,” Schiffauer said. “The five players out there know what we have to get done.”

Good defense can lead to good offense, and sophomore center Jasmine Hines said this team does a very good job of communicating with each other.

“Whenever we bring energy on the defensive end, I feel like we all just play off each other on that end,” Hines said.

“It seems to be working so far.”

She said the low number of bench players might seem like a negative, but they use it as a positive when trying to fight through fatigue.

“If you mess up, there’s no one else that they can sub in, so it helps with our confidence,” she said.

A good defense is dependant on many things, and sophomore forward Becca Mills said an unstoppable attitude is what keeps the Spartans’ intensity and energy levels high.

“Sometimes, we’re really good at it, and other times, we fade when we get comfortable,” Mills said.
“If we hold that attitude the whole season, we can be a great defensive team. So far, we’ve shown that we are capable of it.”