Friday, March 8
Minneapolis, Minn.
3 PM ET
Michigan State University
22-8,12-6Big Ten
61
vs
73
Nebraska
21-10,11-7Big Ten
1
2
3
4
F
Nebraska
21
15
26
11
73
Michigan St.
22
7
13
19
61
Team Stats
Nebr
MSU
FG%
.439
.436
3FG%
.360
.375
FT%
.500
.583
RB
44
30
TO
11
13
STL
3
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
25
FGM
9
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
3
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
F
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG/F
/ Women's Basketball
Photo by: © uzoma obasi
Michigan State Falls to Nebraska in Quarterfinals of Big Ten Tournament
3/8/2024 6:46:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Julia Ayrault leds all scorers with 25 points.
MINNEAPOLIS - Despite a valiant fourth-quarter effort, the No. 4-seeded Michigan State women's basketball team fell to No. 5-seeded Nebraska, 73-61, at the TIAA Big Ten Tournament on Friday at the Target Center.
With the loss, the Spartans halted their five-game winning streak and fall to 22-8. With the victory, Nebraska improves to 21-10 and will face No. 8 Maryland in the semifinals on Saturday.
For just the second time this season, Michigan State had only one player in double figures. Graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault led the all scorers with 25 points, while also adding five rebounds and three blocks. Junior guard/forward Jocelyn Tate, senior guard Moira Joiner and sophomore guard Theryn Hallock all added eight points.
Ayrault's 25 points ties for 11th for most points by a Spartan in the Big Ten Tournament. Maxann Reese also scored 25 points against Penn State on Feb. 27, 1999.
The Huskers were led by 22 points and 12 rebounds by Alexis Markowski.
The teams traded baskets early on before Michigan State used a 6-0 run to take a 12-7 lead at the five- minute mark. The Huskers used their size to score eight second-chance points in the period. Behind six points from Tate, the Spartans led after the first quarter 22-21. Tate and Ayrault combined for 11 of MSU's 21 points in the quarter.
In the second quarter, Nebraska scored seven of the first nine points of the period to take a 28-24 lead. Michigan State ran into early foul trouble with Joiner and Ayrault both being called with two fouls before the half. As the turnovers mounted for MSU, the Nebraska offense got hot, taking a 34-26 lead. MSU went over three minutes without scoring before a Tate basket stopped the Husker assault. Despite forcing five turnovers in the final 4:27, the Spartans weren't able to turn that in to offense, scoring only seven points in the quarter. MSU went into the locker room, trailing 36-29. This was only the fifth time that the Spartans trailed at half time.
Michigan State came to life from beyond the arc in third quarter. Joiner and Ayrault hit back-to-back treys to trim the deficit to five. At the mid-way point of the period, Logan Nissley fueled an 8-0 run to give Huskers a 56-40 lead with 3:30 left in the period. The Nebraska lead grew to as many as 20 points, heading into the final 10 minutes.
The Spartans weren't done fighting though as the offense heated up in the fourth period. MSU used a 7-0 run in the fourth period to cut it to 66-56 at the 3:17 mark after an Ayrault second-chance layup. The Huskers seemed to always find an answer, and MSU would get no closer.
MSU will now await the NCAA Tournament selections on Sunday, March 17 at 8 p.m.
Michigan State Women's Basketball Post-Game Notes
• All-Big Ten selection Julia Ayrault reached 25+ points for the fourth time this season.
• With three blocks, Ayrault also moved into fourth place on the school's all-time list (135).
• Michigan State saw its five-game winning streak snapped.
• MSU held a 14-6 edge in bench points.
• The Spartans were playing as a No. 4 seed for only the second time in program history.
• With 25 points against Nebraska, Julia Ayrault surpassed her total of points scored in her previous three Big Ten Tournament games. Last season, she scored 12 points in two games.
• Michigan State's starting five for Friday's game made up of junior guard DeeDee Hagemann, sophomore guard Abbey Kimball junior guard/forward Jocelyn Tate, graduate guard Moira Joiner and graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault was MSU's 21st-consecutive game with those five Spartans on the court for tip-off. Michigan State has started a total of 27 games this season with that starting five, improving to 19-8 on the season. The only other two Spartans to start this season are sophomore guard Theryn Hallock and junior forward Isaline Alexander.
• Graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault has now scored in double figures for 12-straight games, including scoring 25 against Nebraska on March 8. The Spartans are 20-5 when she scores in double figures this season. For her career, she has 39 double-digit scoring games with MSU standing 29-10 in those games. She leads the team in scoring, averaging 15.4 ppg after only averaging 3.6 ppg last season.
With the loss, the Spartans halted their five-game winning streak and fall to 22-8. With the victory, Nebraska improves to 21-10 and will face No. 8 Maryland in the semifinals on Saturday.
For just the second time this season, Michigan State had only one player in double figures. Graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault led the all scorers with 25 points, while also adding five rebounds and three blocks. Junior guard/forward Jocelyn Tate, senior guard Moira Joiner and sophomore guard Theryn Hallock all added eight points.
Ayrault's 25 points ties for 11th for most points by a Spartan in the Big Ten Tournament. Maxann Reese also scored 25 points against Penn State on Feb. 27, 1999.
The Huskers were led by 22 points and 12 rebounds by Alexis Markowski.
The teams traded baskets early on before Michigan State used a 6-0 run to take a 12-7 lead at the five- minute mark. The Huskers used their size to score eight second-chance points in the period. Behind six points from Tate, the Spartans led after the first quarter 22-21. Tate and Ayrault combined for 11 of MSU's 21 points in the quarter.
In the second quarter, Nebraska scored seven of the first nine points of the period to take a 28-24 lead. Michigan State ran into early foul trouble with Joiner and Ayrault both being called with two fouls before the half. As the turnovers mounted for MSU, the Nebraska offense got hot, taking a 34-26 lead. MSU went over three minutes without scoring before a Tate basket stopped the Husker assault. Despite forcing five turnovers in the final 4:27, the Spartans weren't able to turn that in to offense, scoring only seven points in the quarter. MSU went into the locker room, trailing 36-29. This was only the fifth time that the Spartans trailed at half time.
Michigan State came to life from beyond the arc in third quarter. Joiner and Ayrault hit back-to-back treys to trim the deficit to five. At the mid-way point of the period, Logan Nissley fueled an 8-0 run to give Huskers a 56-40 lead with 3:30 left in the period. The Nebraska lead grew to as many as 20 points, heading into the final 10 minutes.
The Spartans weren't done fighting though as the offense heated up in the fourth period. MSU used a 7-0 run in the fourth period to cut it to 66-56 at the 3:17 mark after an Ayrault second-chance layup. The Huskers seemed to always find an answer, and MSU would get no closer.
MSU will now await the NCAA Tournament selections on Sunday, March 17 at 8 p.m.
Michigan State Women's Basketball Post-Game Notes
• All-Big Ten selection Julia Ayrault reached 25+ points for the fourth time this season.
• With three blocks, Ayrault also moved into fourth place on the school's all-time list (135).
• Michigan State saw its five-game winning streak snapped.
• MSU held a 14-6 edge in bench points.
• The Spartans were playing as a No. 4 seed for only the second time in program history.
• With 25 points against Nebraska, Julia Ayrault surpassed her total of points scored in her previous three Big Ten Tournament games. Last season, she scored 12 points in two games.
• Michigan State's starting five for Friday's game made up of junior guard DeeDee Hagemann, sophomore guard Abbey Kimball junior guard/forward Jocelyn Tate, graduate guard Moira Joiner and graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault was MSU's 21st-consecutive game with those five Spartans on the court for tip-off. Michigan State has started a total of 27 games this season with that starting five, improving to 19-8 on the season. The only other two Spartans to start this season are sophomore guard Theryn Hallock and junior forward Isaline Alexander.
• Graduate guard/forward Julia Ayrault has now scored in double figures for 12-straight games, including scoring 25 against Nebraska on March 8. The Spartans are 20-5 when she scores in double figures this season. For her career, she has 39 double-digit scoring games with MSU standing 29-10 in those games. She leads the team in scoring, averaging 15.4 ppg after only averaging 3.6 ppg last season.
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