The MSU women’s basketball team trails Purdue 33-14 at halftime of the Big Ten Tournament Championship game.
Head coach Suzy Merchant got an early start to her morning yesterday, around 6 a.m., she recalled, when her 2-year-old son woke her up asking for some juice.
Hoffman Estates, Ill. – The only two points Courtney Schiffauer scored all game were the two that put the Spartans on top for the first time. The MSU women’s basketball team upset top seeded No.
Hoffman Estates, Ill. – It wasn’t pretty, but when you’re taking on the champ, all that matters is who’s left standing. That’s how the MSU women’s basketball team felt after avenging two double-digit regular season losses by downing No.
After a hard fought defensive battle, the MSU women’s basketball team upset No. one seed and number 8 in the nation Penn State, 54-46. Senior forward Courtney Schiffauer gave the Spartans their first lead of the game with a driving layup less than five minutes into the second half. Penn State answered with a 3-pointer during the next possession, but sophomore forward Becca Mills returned the favor with a jumper to tie it at 24. The Spartans led by as many as eight, but back-to-back Penn State three pointers cut the lead to one with just more than eight minutes to play. But thanks to Mills and senior guard Jasmine Thomas, the Spartans pulled away. Mills finished with 16 points and was just 1 rebound shy of a double-double, and Thomas ended up with 17 points and 6 rebounds and 3 assists to go with her 2 steal. The Spartans take on Purdue Sunday at 4 p.m.
Defense, rebounding and fouls were the keys to the first half as the MSU women’s basketball team trails top seeded Penn State, 19-17. Both teams shot less than 25 percent from the floor, but the Spartans dominated the boards leading Penn State 25-17 on the glass, seven of them being of the offensive variety. The Nittany Lions got out to a quick 14-5 lead, but the Spartans then went on a 9-2 run to get it back to within two points. From the 7:55 mark on, neither team scored a field goal. Still senior guard Jasmine Thomas was the top performer for the Spartans with five points, two rebounds, one assist, and one steal. Junior forward Annalise Pickrel picked up a trio of fouls early in the half and was forced to sit, and both teams looked tired as they committed 13 turnovers between them.
Hoffman Estates, Ill.- Defense wins championships, or in the case of the MSU women’s basketball team, it gets them closer to one.
Jasmine Thomas missed the final shot she ever took at Breslin Center in a Spartan uniform – a free throw with 2.3 seconds left in the game and a six-point lead in hand. But it doesn’t matter to her.
Jasmine Thomas missed the final shot she ever took at Breslin Center in a Spartan uniform.
As the regular season winds down, the MSU women’s basketball team stuck to what got it to 20 wins this season for the 10th-consecutive year: balanced scoring and defense. The Spartans went on the road and avenged an earlier loss to Purdue by sinking the No.
In the beginning, it looked like a replay of the first matchup between MSU women’s basketball and Purdue. The Boilermakers’ sixth-year senior forward Drey Mingo scored six of No.
The final road trip of the season for the MSU women’s basketball team could prove to be the most challenging yet for the Spartans as they travel to No. 25 Purdue (20-7 overall, 9-5 Big Ten) tonight.
They are former star players, team captains and all-area performers. They know the tendencies of the Big Ten’s top teams and players.
Similar to the Spartans’ previous road game – a one-point loss to Michigan – senior guard Jasmine Thomas did everything in her power to will MSU to victory tonight at Ohio State.
There will be no rest for the weary MSU women’s basketball team as it concludes the 2012-13 regular season.
With three games left in the regular season, as well as the Big Ten tournament and NCAA Tournament on the horizon, the final chapter has yet to be written on this year’s MSU women’s basketball team.
There were two records on Suzy Merchant’s mind heading into Wednesday’s home matchup with Northwestern – one evoked nerves while the other evoked pride. The first, the Wildcats’ losing record on the season, made the sixth-year MSU women’s basketball coach nervous because she knew the number wasn’t indicative of how good Northwestern was. The second was the fruit of MSU’s 54-45 victory Wednesday night, which marked the Spartans’ 10th-straight season of 20 wins or more. “Those are always important numbers and you know how important it is to get there,” Merchant said.
It might have been more challenging than they were expecting, but the Spartans pulled out a much-needed 54-45 win against Northwestern at home Wednesday night.
For the second week in a row, the MSU women’s basketball team will take the Breslin Center floor one day following a highly-anticipated men’s matchup with a winning streak against a conference foe on the line.
The emotions were difficult to hide on both sides. For the visitors wearing green it was disappointment.