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Buckeyes Pounce Spartans

Written by Courtney Wills

No rhythm and a ton of blues left the Lady Spartans at a loss for words against the highly ranked number seven Ohio State Buckeyes at Value City Arena.

The Buckeyes made sure to set the fast-paced tone early as they crushed the Spartans six-game winning streak while Ohio State improved their winning streak to 14.

MSU shot only 29 percent from the floor compared to Ohio State’s 62 percent in the first half giving the Buckeyes a huge lead at halftime of 42 to 23.

Neither Lindsay Bowen nor Liz Shimek, MSU’s top two lead scorers, could establish any sort of rhythm or spark any emotion out of the team. Bowen and Shimek only combined for a total of 10 points, a season low.

Unfortunately, Michigan State would not be able to rally back this time around compared to the last time these two teams met. The Spartans were able to overcome an eleven point deficit in the second half to only lose at the buzzer by two to the Buckeyes.

The Buckeyes would further extend their lead into the second half by 32 points giving the drowning Spartans no room to breathe 69 to 38.

Jessica Davenport, OSU’s top lead scorer who averages and leads the Big Ten with 19 points per game, scored a season high of 22 points as she shot 8 of 10 from the floor. Davenport is also tied for first in rebounds in the Big Ten with Shimek at 6.6 per game.

Both junior guard Brandie Hoskins and senior forward Debbie Merrill combined for a total of 27 points for the Buckeyes outscoring MSU’s two lead scorers, 27 to 10.

Currently, Ohio State is ranked second in the nation in defense scoring with 51.9 points per game as well as third in the country in field goal percentage of 50.2.

After the game, Ohio State head coach Jim Foster received a standing ovation from the crowd as he clinched his 600th career win as a women’s basketball coach. This is Foster’s 29th overall season and fourth season with the Buckeyes.

The Spartans next battle will come this Thursday, February 23rd, against their arch in-state rivals the Michigan Wolverines.