MSU Women Open Baha Mar Nassau Championships against Temple Friday

NASSAU, BAHAMAS - Michigan State women's basketball hits the road for the first time this season at the Baha Mar Hoops Nassau Championship in Nassau, Bahamas on Nov. 28-30. The Spartans will be playing in the Junkanoo Division. The Spartans moved to 6-0 with a 102-41 win over Oakland on Nov. 23.

• Temple heads to the Bahamas with an even 3-3 overall record. The Owls are looking to snap a two-game losing streak after road losses to Richmond and Villanova.

• The Spartans swiped 21 steals on Sunday to post their third 20+ steals outing this season, joining a season-high 24 swipes in the season-opener vs. Mercyhurst (11/4/25) and 20 steals last outing, vs. Eastern Illinois (11/20/25). Michigan State has swiped 15 or more steals in all six games this season.

• After the first six games, Michigan State stands first in the nation in assists per game (27.0 apg) and assist/turnover ratio (3.38). The Spartans are also tops in the NCAA in turnover margin (+22.3).

• Senior guard Theryn Hallock is approaching a milestone this season. With 67 points so far this season, Hallock now has 914 career points. Senior forward Marah Dykstra is also nearing 1,000 points for her career with 870 total points between Montana State and Michigan State.

SCOUTING TEMPLE
Temple comes to the Bahamas with an even 3-3 record. The Owls have lost two straight with road losses to Richmond (57-72) and Villanova (88-58). Temple has wins over George Mason, George Washington and La Salle.

The Owls have three players averaging in double figures, led by Kaylah Turner, who is averaging 14.7 ppg. Tristen Taylor is second in scoring with 11.0 ppg, while Jaleesa Molina stands third with 10.3 ppg. Temple is averaging 71.8 ppg, while allowing 73.0 ppg.

Temple head coach Diane Richardson is in her fourth season at the helm of the Owls. She holds a 134-110 record in nine seasons as a head coach. At Temple, she is 54-44 in four seasons.

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE OWLS
Michigan State leads the all-time series against Temple 4-0. The two teams haven't met since 2013. The Spartans are 3-0 against the Owls in East Lansing. Michigan State won the only meeting in Philadelphia in 2013.

On Nov. 26, 2013, the Spartans won a tight battle with Temple, 74-70. Off the bench, Michigan State was led by future All-American Tori Jankoska who had a double-double with 19 points and 11 rebounds. The Owls were led by Feyonda Fitzgerald who scored a game high 24 points. This is the first neutral site meeting between the two teams.

BACK TO PARADISE
This is the first time that Michigan State has played in the Bahamas since the 2019-20 season. The Spartans went 1-1 at the Junkanoo Jam in Bimini. Michigan State lost its first game to LSU, 58-56, before rebounding for a 65-60 win against Kansas. During the 2015-16 season, the Spartans also played at the Junkanoo Jam. MSU defeated Cincinnati in its first game, before losing to No. 5/4 Baylor in the second game. The Spartans' first trip to the Junkanoo Jam was during the 2009-10 season, where MSU earned wins over George Washington and Oklahoma State.

BY THE NUMBERS vs. OAKLAND

The Spartans swiped 21 steals on Sunday to post their third 20+ steals outing this season, joining a season-high 24 swipes in the season-opener vs. Mercyhurst (11/4/25) and 20 steals last outing, vs. Eastern Illinois (11/20/25). Michigan State has swiped 15 or more steals in all six games this season.
Sunday was Grace VanSlooten's 100th career game, and she has now tallied double-figures in scoring 87 times out of 100 career games, registering 10+ points in 55 games during her time at Oregon.

GETTING IN THE STARTING LINEUP
Michigan State used the same starting lineup for the sixth-straight game of senior forward Grace VanSlooten, senior forward Marah Dykstra, senior guard Theryn Hallock, junior guard Rashunda Jones and redshirt-sophomore guard Kennedy Blair. MSU is 6-0 with that lineup.

OH WHAT A NIGHT!
With her career-best 25 points against Oakland on Nov. 23, redshirt-sophomore guard Kennedy Blair is the second Spartan to score 20 points this season, as well as the first MSU player with 25 or more points since Theryn Hallock netted 29 points last year at Ohio State (2/26/25).

One game earlier against Eastern Illinois, Blair became the first Spartan player with 15 or more rebounds since former Spartan great Julia Ayrault had 15 boards, nearly two years to the day, on Nov. 23, 2023, vs. James Madison.

PUTTING UP BIG NUMBERS
The Spartans topped 100 points for the second game in a row as part of the third time this season, marking the second-straight season that MSU has reached the century mark three times, which also came in the Spartans' first six games of the season. MSU also scored 100 points in game six last year, with a 101-44 Victory for MSU over Detroit Mercy, which was its third 100-point outing.

Michigan State's 102 points against Oakland on Nov. 23 marked the Spartans' sixth time out of six games scoring 90+ points. MSU continues its program history making stretch of scoring 90+ in the first six games of the season. Last season, the Spartans scored 90+ points in the first four games, but only 79 points in game five, finishing the year with six total games scoring 90+ points, as this year's MSU squad has now tied that mark of six games with 90+ games through the just the first six games of the season.

SPARTANS VS. THE NCAA
After the first six games, Michigan State stands first in the nation in assists per game (27.0 apg) and assist/turnover ratio (3.38). The Spartans are also tops in the NCAA in turnover margin (+22.3). Michigan State is also third in the nation and first in the Big Ten in scoring offense, averaging 102.3 ppg. MSU has also been strong on the defensive end of the ball, standing first in the country in steals per game (19.0 spg).

CONSISTENT SPARTANS
MSU scored 20+ points in all four quarters for the third time out of the five games this season, also doing so in the season-opener vs. Mercyhurst (11/4/25) and vs. Youngstown State (11/12/25).

BIG TIME BIG TEN NUMBERS
The Spartans are first in the Big Ten in scoring offense, averaging 102.3 ppg. Michigan State is also first in scoring margin (+54.2). The Spartans stand first in field goal percentage (.543).

Individually, Rashunda Jones is first in the league in steals per game, averaging 3.8 spg, while senior forward Grace VanSlooten is third (3.2 spg). Kennedy Blair is also third in assists with 6.3 apg.

DID YOU KNOW?
Kennedy Blair has already surpassed her point total of all of last season. During the 2024-25 season, the redshirt-sophomore scored 67 points in 20 games. In six games this season, she has already scored 75 points.

WELCOME BACK
After tearing her ACL on Jan. 22, 2025 against Penn State, Juliann Woodard returned to the lineup against Eastern Michigan. Woodard entered the game at the 3:46 mark of the fourth quarter. At the 3:39 point, she drained her first shot, which was a 3-pointer. Her trey gave the Spartans a 32-point advantage.

STRONG BENCH
Against Oakland on Nov. 23, Michigan State's bench out-scored the Grizzlies 37-9. The Spartans' 59 points scored by their bench was more than Eastern Illinois' entire team scoring of 53 points on Nov. 20. This season the MSU bench has out-scored opponents 275-105.

ADDING UP THE ACCOLADES
Senior forward Grace VanSlooten was named to the 2025-26 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Women's College Player of the Year Watch List Presented by AXIA Time. She was one of 50 players named to the watch list that honors the best players in the nation.

VanSlooten is one of 13 Big Ten players named to the watch list, including her team USA teammate Hannah Stuelke from Iowa. VanSlooten was also named to the Preseason All-Big Ten team earlier this month as well the Cheryl Miller Award Watch List.

RANKED TEAMS IN BIG TEN
This Big Ten continues to be one of the toughest conferences in the country with three teams in the top 10 in the rankings. In the AP poll, UCLA is No. 3, while Michigan and Maryland stand No. 6 and No. 9, respectively. USC is just outside the top 10 at No. 11. Iowa holds the No. 19 spot followed by Michigan State (No. 22) and Washington (No. 25).

ALEXANDER THE GREAT
After missing all of the 2024-25 season and much of the 2023-24 season, senior forward Isaline Alexander returned to action on Nov. 4 against Mercyhurst. Alexander scored a career-high 20 points against Western Michigan. She topped her previous career-high of 17 points from Nov. 19, 2022 vs. Central Michigan for her first career 20-point outing and just her seventh career double-figure scoring outing .

She netted her career-best 20 points on a perfect 9-of-9 shooting from the floor, also a career-high, bettering her previous career-high field goal outing of seven field goals, vs. Oregon (11/27/22).

HOLDING ON TO THE BALL
The Spartans only had three turnovers on Nov. 4 against Mercyhurst, also setting a school record for fewest turnovers, bettering the previous record of five done three previous times, first done in a 56-55 win at Northwestern on Jan. 22, 1989, then again in a 76-69 win vs. Stanford on March 29, 2005 and most recently in a 68-66 win over Toledo on March 18, 2018.

SEASON OPENERS
Michigan State has won its 12th-straight season-opener and three in a row under head coach Robyn Fralick. MSU's last season-opening loss was on Nov. 11, 2013 at #6/7 Notre Dame. The Spartans have won 16-consecutive home openers, as their last loss in the first home game of the season was on Nov. 19, 2009 vs. #5/6 Notre Dame.

VANSLOOTEN EARNS PRESEASON HONOR
Michigan State women's basketball senior forward Grace VanSlooten was named 2025-26 Preseason All-Big Ten by both the coaches and media. In her first season with the Spartans, VanSlooten earned second-team All-Big Ten honors. She was first on the team in scoring, averaging 15.5 points per game. She scored a career-high 480 points her junior season. She was tied for 15th in the Big Ten in rebounding, averaging 7.3 rebounds per game. In a win against, Vanderbilt at the Acrisure Classic on Nov. 27, she scored her 1,000th career point.
BRINGING HOME THE GOLD
Three players earned gold medals for their home countries this summer. Grace VanSlooten won the FIBA Women's Americup for Team USA. Marah Dykstra won gold for Canada in the FIBA 3x3 Junior Pan American Games. Inés Sotelo and Spain won a gold medal in the 2025 FIBA Eurobasket.

O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!
Michigan State head coach Robyn Fralick has announced senior forward Grace VanSlooten and senior guard Abbey Kimball as team captains, as voted on by the players on the 2025-26 women's basketball team. This is the first time that either has been named a captain for Michigan State. VanSlooten is in her second season with MSU after transferring from Oregon. Kimball is in her fourth season as a Spartan.

MSU surpassed the century mark for the second time this season with the 101-53 win over Eastern Illinois on Nov. 20. MSU scored at least 100 points three times last season.

LAST TIME OUT
Redshirt-sophomore guard Kennedy Blair's career high in scoring helped No. 22 Michigan State women's basketball close out its six-game homestand with a dominating 102-41 win over Oakland Sunday at the Breslin Center.

Redshirt-sophomore guard Kennedy Blair topped her career high with 25 points, going 10-for-11 from the field. The last Spartan to reach 25 points was Theryn Hallock last season against Ohio State on Feb. 26, 2025, when she scored 29. Once again, senior forward Grace VanSlooten reached double figures with 14 points to go along with five boards. Senior guard Hallock was the final Spartan in double digits, scoring 10 points.

NEW DIGS
The Spartans welcome four transfers to the 2025-26 season. Rashunda Jones is a junior guard, who comes to Michigan State after two years at Purdue. Marah Dykstra is a senior forward who spent three season at Montana State in the Big Sky Conference. Jalyn Brown is the second-straight player to come to MSU from Arizona State. The guard played two seasons at ASU. Last season, senior Jaddan Simmons spent one season with MSU. Finally, Sara Sambolić is a junior guard from Slovenia who transferred from the University of Ljubljana.

ROBYN FRALICK RADIO SHOW
Michigan State women's basketball head coach Robyn Fralick started her weekly radio call-in show, the Robyn Fralick Radio Show, on Nov. 18 at One North Kitchen and Bar. Coach Fralick joins host Dalton Shetler, the Spartans' play-by-play voice, from 12-1 p.m., for an in-depth look into the MSU women's basketball program. The show is held at One North Kitchen and Bar on 1310 Abbott in East Lansing.

Radio Show Dates
Tuesday, Dec. 2
Tuesday, Dec. 9
Tuesday, Dec. 16
Tuesday, Jan. 6
Tuesday, Jan. 13
Tuesday, Jan. 20
Tuesday, Jan. 27
Tuesday, Feb. 3
Tuesday Feb. 10
Tuesday, Feb. 17
Tuesday, Feb. 24

MSU Women Open Baha Mar Nassau Championships against Temple Friday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Isaline Alexander

Julia Ayrault

Kennedy Blair

Jalyn Brown

Marah Dykstra

Theryn Hallock

Rashunda Jones

Abbey Kimball

Jaddan Simmons

Grace VanSlooten

Juliann Woodard

MSU Women Open Baha Mar Nassau Championships against Temple Friday

Related News

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Isaline Alexander

Julia Ayrault

Kennedy Blair

Jalyn Brown

Marah Dykstra

Theryn Hallock

Rashunda Jones

Abbey Kimball

Jaddan Simmons

Grace VanSlooten

Juliann Woodard

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