MSU Women Put Together Important Win at Top-25 Minnesota
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Michigan State women's basketball has added another impressive win to its resume.
The 18th-ranked Spartans on Sunday night went into No. 23 Minnesota and actually trailed for most of the game, but MSU used a 28-7 that spanned the third and fourth quarters to take down the Golden Gophers, 75-61. Minnesota, which entered the game winners of nine in a row, led by as much as 10 in the second quarter and by as much as eight during the second half.
This victory is huge for Michigan State for a couple of reasons. The main one is that is seriously heightens the Spartans' chances at receiving a top-16 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament --- that's important because those teams get to host the first two rounds on campus. Minnesota is ranked 23rd in the AP Poll, but the Golden Gophers are actually all the way up at eighth in the NET rankings.
Michigan State is now ranked 15th in Monday's AP Poll, 22-6 overall on the year, and 11-6 during Big Ten play. Head coach Robyn Fralick's first two teams in East Lansing both won 22 games apiece, but this team has one regular season game left (against Ohio State on March 1), the Big Ten Tournament, and then March Madness ahead of it.
More on Sunday's Game
Senior guard Jalyn Brown was a major component of the Spartans' victory in this one. She dropped a team-high 20 points on an efficient 8-for-14 shooting night that included a 2-for-4 game from three.
Speaking of making threes, freshman Amy Terrian made three of them in the span of three minutes during the third quarter. Her 11 points are the second-most she has dropped this season, only behind her 15 points in the season opener against Mercyhurst, and the most she's had during a Big Ten game.
MSU also had 18 points, eight rebounds, and six assists from star guard Kennedy Blair, but it does come with the caveat of her seven turnovers. Star big Grace VanSlooten was held to a relatively quiet 10 points and six rebounds on the night, too. The optimist can easily look at that and be pleased that the Spartans have enough firepower behind Blair and VanSlooten to find a way to win when they're a little bit off in some ways.
Michigan State also got some players back. Isaline Alexander, who at one point seemed to be done for the season with a leg injury, played her first game back since Dec. 28. MSU also got Rashunda Jones back. She seemed to suffer an ankle injury against Michigan on Feb. 15, but she came back on Sunday after only missing the one game against Northwestern.
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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