Michigan State senior guard/forward Jocelyn Tate (11) shoots the ball while Penn State redshirt sophomore guard Moriah Murray (3) guards her at the Breslin Center on Jan. 22, 2025. The Spartans defeated the Nittany Lions 82-61.
Michigan State University senior guard/forward Jocelyn Tate refuses to be labeled solely as a defensive specialist—she’s determined to be more.
“In my past years, that was the one thing (shooting) the scout would make known that I wasn't able to do and I wanted to be a threat,” Tate said.
On Wednesday night, No. 22 MSU women’s basketball defeated Penn State 82-61, fueled by Tate’s offensive performance. She scored 10 points in the first quarter and finished the game with 15 points, shooting 3-of-4 from three-point range, along with five assists, five rebounds, three blocks and a steal.
"With Jocelyn, she's such a unique player that you really have to watch to understand the impact," MSU head coach Robyn Fralick said. "You have to watch to understand the motor, the energy, the deflections and her ability to just guard so many different players and in so many different spaces, open court and in the paint. She had a nose for the ball, she did a good job getting deflections and finished well. So, really an overall complete offensive and defensive game from her."
In her final season, Tate has prioritized improving her shooting and becoming a stronger offensive presence, as she showcased with her three-point performance on Wednesday.
“I thought it made our offense really hard to move,” Tate said. “Basically, with my problems, I felt like it made it harder for my teammates, so I didn't want that to happen. and it also messed with my confidence a lot when they wouldn’t guard me. So, I was like, this is my last year. I can't go through that again, and it's a horrible feeling that I don't want to feel again.”
Defensively, the Spartans limited Penn State’s top scorers, redshirt sophomore center Gracie Merkel and graduate guard Gabby Elliott, to just four points each. Elliott, a former Spartan who played two seasons at the Breslin Center, is no stranger to the court.
“I'm just proud of the way defense just keeps getting better all the time as the season goes on,” Tate said. “There's still a lot of things we need to work on, but I feel like we're doing a better job of moving together.”
Three other Spartans finished the game in double digits: Theryn Hallock tallied up 17 points, Julia Ayrault scored 16 points and Grace VanSlooten scored 10 points.
The Spartans remain unbeaten at home (10-0) and improve to 16-3 overall and 6-2 in Big Ten play.
MSU women’s basketball travels to Ann Arbor on Saturday, Jan. 25, to face in-state rival Michigan. Tip-off is set for 12 p.m. at the Crisler Center.
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