MSU Women Quickly Bow Out of Big Ten Tournament vs. Illinois
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Michigan State women's basketball's Big Ten Tournament run did not last long.
The 18th-ranked Spartans have quickly been ousted from the conference tournament in their first game for the third consecutive year. MSU, seeded seventh in the Big Ten, last a close to No. 10 seed Illinois on Thursday night, 71-69.
This loss is in spite of a 30-point performance from redshirt sophomore guard Kennedy Blair, which surpasses her previous career-high of 25.
Michigan State now falls to 22-8 on the season, and will now have a long wait until Selection Sunday, which is on March 15. The main question is if the team's resume will be good enough to receive a top-16 overall seed, which are the teams that get to host the NCAA Tournament's first two rounds on-campus.
Game Recap
First Half
Things started out swimmingly for Michigan State, as it started the game on a 6-0 run and was smothering the Fighting Illini's sharpshooting offense, forcing plenty of early turnovers. Both teams continued to trade some baskets for the bulk of the middle portion of the first quarter, but then Illinois struck.
The Illini finished the first quarter on an 8-0 run to end up taking a three-point lead into the second quarter, suddenly putting the favored Spartans on their heels a little bit. MSU kept trying to even the deal in the second quarter, but Illinois had a response every time. With a little less than a minute left until halftime, Michigan State was within three. The Illini then scored four straight in the final moments of the second quarter and went into the locker room with a 36-29 lead.
Second Half
MSU came out of the gates in the second half swinging, too. The Spartans began the third quarter on a 13-5 run, with a 9-0 run included, to suddenly take a one-point lead five minutes in. Illinois seemed to absorb that punch, though, as it quickly surged back ahead, getting to enjoy a five-point lead entering the fourth quarter.
A quicker start to the fourth was going to be necessary for Michigan State to come back in this one, but the Illini went and scored the quarter's first four points to extend their lead out to nine, their largest advantage of the game. The Spartans had another surge in them, though, as they got the deficit down to two in the final two minutes.
MSU had its chance at the very end. It had the ball down two with the shot clock off, but ended up turning it over with one second left, as Blair sent a pass to Jalyn Brown that bounced off her hands.
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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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