Women’s basketball off to a scorching start
Let’s take a few minutes to show our appreciation and admiration for a couple of Michigan State’s women’s teams. Both the MSU women’s soccer and basketball teams have been putting on a show for their fans. If you are not already paying attention to these two squads, it may be time for you to start.
We will begin with a peek at the women’s soccer team. After knocking off Western Michigan in the opening game of the NCAA Tournament last Saturday, the team is now in Durham, North Carolina, to take on Texas in the round of 32. The team looked very impressive in their tournament opener, advancing with a 3-1 victory. With goals from Emily Mathews, Justina Gaynor, and Bella Najera – 3 of the top 4 goal scorers on the year – and a defensive effort that only allowed two shots on net, these Spartans gave hints of the version of themselves that we saw earlier in the season when they made it to the top of the national rankings.
Their hot start cooled a bit as the season progressed, to the point where they entered the Tournament as a 5-seed. If they can duplicate last Saturday’s performance, they very well could knock off the 4-seed Texas and earn a trip to the round of 16. But they will have their hands full with the Longhorns who recently won the SEC Tournament and just knocked off Boston University by a 4-1 margin in their first-round game of the national tournament.
The two teams shared two common opponents this season, SEC teams Ole Miss and Arkansas. MSU tied the Razorbacks 2-2 and defeated the Rebels 1-0, both at home. Texas also beat Ole Miss 1-0, but they later lost to Arkansas 4-3 on their home field. Comparing the two teams’ stats for the whole season, the Longhorns lead the Spartans in goals scored, 49 to 42, while MSU has a slight advantage in goals allowed 15 to 17. Similarly, Texas has had more shots on goal, 186 to 136, but MSU has allowed fewer shots on goal, 91 to 120.
This may be a game that Michigan State needs to win with their offense rather than their defense. Here are the details for the game.
When: Friday, November 22, @ 4 PM
Where: Koskinen Stadium; Durham, North Carolina
TV: ESPN+
If you are out of work in time, tune in to support these women in their attempt to prolong their season.
Photo by Steven King/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Currently on the other end of their season, the MSU women’s hoops team is off to a strong start through two weeks. They currently sit at 6-0 with several blowouts amongst those wins. While they certainly have not been playing top level competition (the opponents have been Oakland, Yale, Eastern Michigan, Eastern Kentucky, Western Michigan, and Detroit Mercy), the margins of these games should still make you raise your eyebrows. The Spartans have scored at least 95 points in all but one game (they scored 79 at WMU), and the most they gave up was 54, to EKU. In three of their games, MSU has more doubled their opponents’ score; they won their opener by 65 points.
Individually, the women’s team is being led by Julia Ayrault (15.4 PPG), Moira Joiner (14.7), and DeeDee Hagemenn (12.3). Hagemenn also leads the team in assists, averaging 5.2 per contest. Ayrault also doubles as the rebounds leader, pulling down 7.3 per game.
As a team, they shoot .522 from the field and .365 from downtown. On defense, they are allowing 45.8 PPG on 31.3% shooting, good for fourth and tenth nationally, respectively.
The schedule gets harder from here. Next week they travel to Palm Springs in the California desert for the Acrisure Classic. On Tuesday, they take on California, and they will face either Arizona or Vanderbilt on Wednesday. They conclude their non-conference schedule with games against Depaul, Montana, and Alabama. This team is currently one of the “others receiving votes” in the polls, but the latest one was before their latest game, a 101-44 win. If MSU can continue this offensive barrage, it will not be long before they are in the top 25.
Let’s give it up for the women of Sparta!