EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State women’s basketball concludes its two-game road trip at No. 13/14 Maryland on Saturday, Jan. 7. Tip off time is set for 1 p.m. on BTN+ with Tyler Lochte and Josh Caplan calling the action.
• After losing four-straight games, the Spartans have rebounded and have won four in a row. Michigan State jumped to 10-5 overall and evened out its Big Ten mark to 2-2 with a 71-64 win over Northwestern on the road on Jan. 2. No. 13/14 Maryland stands 12-3 overall and 3-1 in league contests after a 78-67 win at Rutgers on Jan. 2.
•The Spartans are ninth in the in nation and second in the Big Ten in turnover margin (7.87). Michigan State is also 10th in the country in assists per game with 18.7 apg.
•Sophomore guard Matilda Ekh was 5-for-6 from 3-point range in the second quarter vs. Northwestern on Jan. 2, finishing the game 5-for-8 behind the arc. The five triples was one shy of her season and career-best, with six 3-pointers vs. Western Michigan (Nov. 13), her third career game with six treys.
•During MSU’s four-game winning streak, the Spartans are out-scoring its opponents 85.8 ppg-58.3 ppg. Three Spartans are averaging in double figures during the streak in Kamaria McDaniel (16.3 ppg), Matilda Ekh (16.0 ppg) and Taiyier Parks (11.5 ppg).
SCOUTING MARYLAND
No. 13/14 Maryland improved to 12-3 overall and 3-1 in Big Ten action after a 78-67 win at Rutgers on Jan. 2. The Terrapins only Big Ten loss came at home against Nebraska on Dec. 4, 90-67. UMD has big non-conference wins against UConn, Baylor and Notre Dame. Maryland’s other Big Ten wins came against Purdue and Minnesota.
Maryland has nine new players this season, including five transfers. The Terps have three players, averaging in double figures, led by Diamond Miller (18.3 ppg). Miller is fourth in the league in scoring, while Abby Meyers is 16th with 14.8 ppg. Shyanne Sellers is the final Terp in double figures, scoring 14.4 ppg. Miller is also 11th in the league in scoring, bringing down 6.6 rpg and first in blocks (1.86 bpg).
As a team, the Terps are first in the Big Ten in free throw percentage, shooting .781 from the charity stripe. Maryland is also fourth in the league in steals, averaging 9.7 spg. Much like the Spartans, the Terrapins have a solid defense, standing third in the B1G in turnover margin (+6.27).
Brenda Frese is in her 21st season as the leader of the Terrapins’ program. She has a career record of 604-173 (.777) and a record at Maryland of 547-143 (.793). She is the winningest coach in Maryland basketball history.
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE TERRAPINS
Maryland leads the overall series with Michigan State, 16-2. The Terps have won the last five games in the series, including a 67-62 win in East Lansing last season. Maryland leads the series in East Lansing 5-1 and in neutral sites 5-0.
The Spartans earned their first win against the Terps on Jan. 11, 2018. Michigan State defeated Maryland, 82-68, with a resounding performance. Almost exactly one year later, the Spartans captured their only home win against the Terps with a 77-60 win on Jan. 17, 2019.
BY THE NUMBERS VS. NORTHWESTERN
• Senior forward Taiyier Parks netted double-digits for the second-straight game with 17 points off the bench, after tallying a season-high tying 18 points last time out in MSU’s upset of No. 4 Indiana (Dec. 29). Parks registered her fourth game this season in double figures with 11 points in the first half alone, along with her 27th career game with 10+ points.
• Graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel tallied double-figures for the third game in a row with 13 points Monday night, posting double-digits for the 11th time in the 15 games this season. McDaniel drained two 3-pointers, marking her second multi 3-pointer game in the last three outings, as part of the fifth game this season with more than one triple, with all five outings coming in the last eight games.
MIGHTY MATILDA
Sophomore guard Matilda Ekh was instrumental in the Spartans win against Northwestern on Jan. 2. Trailing 20-15 after the first quarter, MSU out-scored the Wildcats 28-12 in the second period thanks in part to Ekh.
She netted 17 of her season-high 21 points in the second quarter alone, after going scoreless in the first quarter. Ekh was 5-for-6 from 3-point range in the second quarter, finishing the game 5-for-8 behind the arc.
PLAY THE BEST TO BE THE BEST
The Dec. 29 win over No. 4/3 Indiana was MSU’s third opponent ranked in the top 5, after facing then-No. 5/4 Iowa State on Nov. 24, 2022 in Portland, Oregon, and playing at then-No. 3/4 Ohio State on Dec. 11, 2022. It was also MSU’s fourth game against a ranked opponent, also playing No. 18/18 Oregon on Nov. 27.
LAST TIME VS. THE TERRAPINS
Despite senior guard Nia Clouden’s 18 second-half points, Michigan State women’s basketball had its four-game winning streak halted by No. 17/14 Maryland on the 36th annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day in East Lansing, Michigan on Feb. 3, 2022.
Michigan State had three players in double figures led by 22 points by Clouden who also added five rebounds and four assists. Senior forward Alisia Smith was two points shy of her Michigan State career high with 18 points to go along with eight rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Smith has scored in double figures in three-straight games. Freshman guard/forward Matilda Ekh added 10 points and was just shy of her career high with seven boards. The Spartans had 50 of their 67 points come Clouden, Smith and Ekh.
BACK ON TRACK
After losing four-straight games, the Spartans have rebounded to win four in a row. During that streak, graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel has led the team in scoring, averaging 16.3 ppg. Sophomore DeeDee Hagemann has emerged as a force during that span, averaging 7.8 points, 5.5 assists and 2.5 steals per game. The defense has been solid during the last four games with 50 total steals (12.5 spg) and 15 blocks (3.8 bpg).
TAKING DOWN THE TOP
Michigan State’s upset of No. 4/3 Indiana is the Spartans’ highest win over a ranked team since upsetting No. 4/4 Michigan, 63-57, on Feb. 10, 2022 at the Breslin Center. MSU dealt the Hoosiers their first loss of the season, as Indiana brought a 12-0 overall and 2-0 Big Ten ledger into Thursday’s contest.
TOUGH TAI
Senior forward Taiyier Parks has been a formidable presence during the Spartans’ winning streak. She tied her career high with 18 points against Indiana on Dec. 29. She followed that up with a 17-point performance against Northwestern on Jan. 2. Parks registered her fourth game this season in double figures with 11 points in the first half alone, along with her 27th career game with 10+ points.
She added six rebounds, two steals and one block Monday night, giving her 35 points, 14 rebounds, four steals and one block in the last two games. After starting the first nine games of the season, Parks has come off the bench in the last five games, and has scored 48 points in those five contests, averaging 9.6 points per game, compared to scoring 60 points in the nine games she scored, an average of 6.7 ppg.
DID YOU KNOW?
Boosted by senior forward Taiyier Parks with 17 points, along with senior guard Moira Joiner’s seven points and redshirt-junior guard Julia Ayrault with six points, MSU had a 30-19 bench scoring advantage against Northwestern. The Spartans are now 10-2 when the MSU bench out-scores the opposition’s bench. The Michigan State reserves’ 30 points Monday marked the ninth game this season with 30+ points bench scoring.
BIG TEN OPENERS
Michigan State is 20-21 in Big Ten openers, having won seven of their 12. MSU is 9-7 in league openers in Coach Merchant’s 16 seasons after losing to Iowa in last season’s league opener. During the 2020-21 season, the Spartans won their opener in Minneapolis, 81-68, over the Gophers.
LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS
Michigan State currently has a NET ranking of 30, which stands sixth in the Big Ten. Indiana leads the Big Ten, standing sixth. The Big Ten has the second-best RPI in the nation behind the ACC. MSU’s RPI stands 151.
MCDANIEL DOES IT AGAIN
Graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel tallied double-figures for the third game in a row with 13 points Monday night against Northwestern, posting double-digits for the 11th time in the 15 games this season. McDaniel drained two 3-pointers, marking her second multi 3-pointer game in the last three outings, as part of the fifth game this season with more than one triple, with all five outings coming in the last eight games.
MORE MO PLEASE
Senior guard Moira Joiner has had a resurgence since returning from concussion symptoms that shortened her 2021-22 season. In 14 games this season, she has averaged 8.6 points per game. Against Central Michigan on Nov. 19, she scored a season-high 17 points. She also tied her career high with five made 3-pointers. She also made five treys against Rutgers on Jan. 20, 2020 and Northwestern on Jan. 23, 2020, which were back-to-back games.
She has now started games against Iowa State (Nov. 24) and Ohio State (Dec. 11). Against the Buckeyes, she was just short of here season high with 16 points to go along with four assists. She also played a season-high 34 minutes against OSU. She also added 11 points against both Detroit Mercy on Dec. 18 Prairie View A&M on Dec. 20. Overall, she has scored in double figures in seven games this season.
FREQUENT FLYER
Sophomore guard Matilda Ekh returned to the lineup for the Spartans against Oregon on Nov. 27. After playing against Central Michigan on Nov. 19, Ekh traveled to Sweden for a National Team game against Israel. She arrived in Portland on Friday and scored 14 points for the Spartans against Oregon on Nov. 25. She also scored 14 points against Georgia Tech on Dec. 1 and 12 against Purdue on Dec. 5.
CLOSE CALLS
During the Spartans five-game losing streak, four of the five loses have come by a margin of eight points or less. On Nov. 27, MSU fell to No. 18/18 Oregon, 86-78. MSU lost to Georgia Tech on Dec. 1, 66-63, before falling in overtime to Purdue on Dec. 5, 76-71. Against No. 3/4 Ohio State, the Spartans fell, 74-68. Michigan State lost the final four games of the losing streak by a total of 22 points.
BALANCED ATTACK
Without All-American Nia Clouden to dominate the box score this season, the Spartans are looking for a more balanced attack. In 14 games this season, Michigan State has spread out the scoring. Eight different players have led the team in scoring this season. Graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel has led the team in scoring five times this season. Senior forward Taiyier Parks, junior guard Gabby Elliott and senior guard Moira Joiner have both led the team in scoring twice. McDaniel has four 20-point games and has led the team in scoring in all of those games. Sophomore guard Matilda Ekh has led the squad in scoring three times.
TOPPING THE CHARTS
Michigan State is among the Big Ten’s leaders in several categories this season. The Spartans are currently second in the B1G in turnover margin (+7.9) and third in steals (11.9 spg). MSU is also first in the league in offensive rebounds per game (15.1) and fourth in the conference in assists (18.7 apg). MSU currently stands third in the league in scoring margin (+21.8).
Sophomore guard Matilda Ekh is first in the Big Ten in 3-point field percentage, shooting .443. She is also third in made 3-pointers per game with 2.8. Sophomore guard DeeDee Hagemann stands third in the Big Ten in assist/turnover ration (2.86). Graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel is 17th in the league in scoring, averaging 14.7 ppg.
AROUND THE NATION
This week, Michigan State is 10th in the nation and fourth in the Big Ten in assists, averaging 18.7, behind Iowa (19.3 apg). MSU is also ninth in the nation and second in the Big Ten in turnover margin (+7.9).
Individually, sophomore DeeDee Hagemann is ninth in the NCAA and third in the Big Ten in assist/turnover ratio (2.86). Graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel is 40th in the nation and sixth in the league in total free throws made with 61.
UP NEXT
The Spartans will then return home to face Wisconsin on Wednesday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m. Michigan State will close out the week at Michigan on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 2 p.m
TITLE IX CELEBRATION
Throughout the season, Michigan State will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of Title IX. MSU Athletics kicked off its year-round celebration on June 23, 2022. While the work in advancing women’s athletics is not complete, the Spartans will celebrate the advancements that have been made in the last 50 years.
LEGENDARY SPARTAN
Former Michigan State women’s basketball guard Nia Clouden was drafted 12th in the first round by the Connecticut Sun at the 2022 WNBA Draft. Clouden was the 12th Big Ten student-athlete drafted by the Sun franchise (which began as the Orlando Miracle from 1999-2002). Clouden, an Owings Mills, Maryland native, became the eighth Spartan to be selected in the WNBA draft. Tori Jankoska was the ninth overall pick in the 2017 draft by the Chicago Sky, while Aerial Powers was the fifth overall pick in 2016 going to the Dallas Wings.
Maxann Reese and Kristen Rasmussen were the first Spartans selected in the WNBA, drafted in 2000. Reese was taken in the third round, while Rasmussen was selected in the fourth. In 2003, Syreeta Broomfield was drafted in the third round. In 2005, Kristin Haynie was the ninth overall pick by Sacramento, while Liz Shimek was taken in the second round by Phoenix in 2006.
SPARTANS: THE NEW CLASS
Michigan State women’s basketball head coach Suzy Merchant announced the signing of two National Letters of Intent on Thursday, including Jordan Wood (Chicago, Illinois/Carmel Catholic High School) and Bree Robinson (Mississauga, Ontario/ Webb School).
Wood is a 6-4 forward, who is a native of Chicago, Illinois. She attends Carmel Catholic High School and is coached by Ben Berg. Wood is currently ranked No. 62 in the ESPNW HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings. As a junior, she scored 1,000 points, as well as leading the Corsairs to a Class 3A Illinois State Championship. Last season, she averaged 14.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, while also leading the team in assists (3.2 apg).
Robinson is a 5-8 guard, who is a native of Mississauga, Ontario, plays for head coach Matthew Shewmake at the Webb School (Tenn.). She helped lead the Webb school to a Tennessee State Championship, earning First-Team All-District 3 honors in the process. She also has a vast amount of international experience playing for Team Canada. She was the captain for Team Canada, playing in the U16 FIBA Americas in 2021, capturing a silver medal.
CLOSING OUT THE GAMES
The Spartans have been extremely effective closing out games over the last couple years, winning 248 of its last 261 games (.950) when leading with five minutes left, including 198 of their last 213. In Coach Merchant’s tenure, Michigan State is 282-21 (.931) when holding a lead with five minutes left. This season, MSU is 10-0 when leading with five minutes remaining.
MAGIC NUMBERS
In head coach Suzy Merchant‘s tenure, when two numbers on the scoreboard were achieved it typically has been a sign of a MSU win. The Green & White have won 180 of their last 212 games (.850) when scoring at least 70 points, and the Spartans are 200-43 (.823) under head coach Suzy Merchant when hanging at least 70 points on the scoreboard. This season, MSU is 70-2 this season when scoring 70 points. The Spartans have losses to Oregon and Purdue went reaching the 70-point mark.
