MSU Women's Hoops Takes Down Ole Miss for Massive Ranked Victory
In this story:
This one's a big one.
No. 24 Michigan State women's basketball made a statement on Monday night, taking down 15th-ranked Ole Miss, 66-49. The game was played in Cherokee, N.C., as part of the Cherokee Invitational's championship game. MSU beat Indiana State on Sunday to reach the title game.
The Rebels are the highest-ranked team the Spartans have beaten during the Robyn Fralick era. MSU's last such win against a team ranked so high was on Dec. 29, 2022, when it upset No. 4 Indiana during the final year of the Suzy Merchant era.
Michigan State now rises to 11-1 on the year, but this is the first truly impressive win the Spartans can flex on their resume. The Big Ten schedule now awaits them after Christmas break, with MSU's next contest being Sunday against Rutgers in East Lansing.
Game Recap
Things were tightly contested early on, as one would expect between two quality teams on a neutral court. Michigan State went to Isaline Alexander a lot early, who scored the game's first four points and finished with six in the opening quarter. It did not lead to any separation, though, as the game was tied at 12-12 after 10 minutes.
The theme in this one is... there was not a lot of scoring. Not just that first quarter, but in any quarter, really. Michigan State committed 22 turnovers, and Ole Miss had 20. The difference was when the shots did go up, MSU converted more of them. Ole Miss shot just 33.3% from the field on Monday night, while the Spartans shot 49.0%. The Rebels shot 2-for-17 (11.8%) from three; Michigan State was 5-for-8 (62.5%).
MSU did gain some separation during the second quarter, but it was due to the defense. Ole Miss only scored eight points the entire quarter, turning the ball over nine times to just three made field goals. Turning opponents over is something Fralick's teams often do well at Michigan State, and this quarter was that at its best. It led to a 26-20 halftime lead for the Spartans.
The game was then put away in the third quarter. MSU dominated the critical 10-minute stretch, outscoring the Rebels 23-12 to give itself a 17-point advantage headed into the fourth quarter. Rashunda Jones had eight points, and Kennedy Blair had seven in the quarter.
Another performance that deserves recognition is the one from forward Grace VanSlooten, who scored a game-high 16 points with 10 rebounds. Alexander also had 14 points and six rebounds.
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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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