No. 21 MSU Women's Basketball Dominates No. 24 Michigan
The No. 21 Michigan State Spartans' second-half hot streak led to a 30-point rout of the No. 24 Michigan Wolverines on their home court.
The Wolverines had a slight edge in the first half, entering the third quarter with a four-point lead. But the second half was all Michigan State, outscoring the Wolverines by 34 in the final 20 minutes.
The Spartans' calling card is typically their high-powered offense, but on Saturday, it was their suffocating defense that secured the win, allowing just 25 points in the second half.
Spartans guard Theryn Hallock has experience in the rivalry, and it showed. The junior led the game in scoring with 25 points, making eight shots from the field, including three from behind the arc.
Veteran guard Julia Ayrault was a scoring threat and was active on the glass. Ayrault earned her sixth double-double of the season, scoring 18 points and grabbing 13 rebounds.
Michigan State also received key contributions from the bench. Oregon transfer Grace Vanslooten scored 18 points, making 80 percent of her shots.
Michigan State head coach Robyn Fralick has taken care of Michigan in her short time leading the program. The Okemos native has won all three matchups against the Wolverines, with two of those victories coming on the road.
After a slow start to conference play, the Spartans are now on a five-game win streak. With the win, they improve to 7-2 in the Big Ten and 17-3 overall. Michigan State is now in fourth place in the Big Ten standings, 1.5 games back from first place which is controlled by newcomers USC and UCLA, who are both in the top five of the AP Poll.
If the Spartans continue on this pace, they will clinch a March Madness berth for the second consecutive season. Fralick would be the first head coach in program history to make back-to-back tournament appearances in her first two years as head coach.
The last time Michigan State made consecutive March Madness appearances was 2015-2017.
The Spartans will be back at the Breslin Center on Thursday to host the Oregon Ducks in what will be a reunion for VanSlooten, who transferred from Eugene this offseason.
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