Following Thursday’s startling loss to Wisconsin, the MSU women’s basketball team needed a big effort Sunday against Penn State.
But for the second straight game, the Spartans went cold down the stretch, as MSU did not make a field goal in the final eight minutes in a 68-60 loss to the Lady Lions at Bryce Jordan Center.
The loss is MSU’s third in a row and fourth in six games. The Spartans now drop to 11-7 overall and 2-5 in the Big Ten.
After blowing a 14-point second half lead Thursday, MSU led by as many as nine in the first half and by as many as five in the second half Sunday but couldn’t finish.
The Spartans shot 45 percent in the first half but again couldn’t do anything in the second half, shooting an icy 25 percent.
“We just couldn’t buy a basket in the second half,” MSU head coach Suzy Merchant told the Spartan Sports Network following the game. “I thought we had really good looks and point-blank looks.”
Freshman guard Jasmine Thomas got going for the Spartans, scoring a career-high 19 points. Her 3-pointer with 8:16 remaining was MSU’s final field goal of the game. It gave the Spartans a 54-51 lead.
“She was really being the aggressor,” Merchant said. “She definitely is a scorer for us. She has the ability to do it all.
“I thought she was a real bright spot for us.”
Senior center Allyssa DeHaan battled an illness, Merchant said, and was a nonfactor for much of the game. She played 20 minutes and had no rebounds in the first half, no points in the second half and only took five shots. She finished with five points, three rebounds and two blocks.
“We were keeping her fresh by playing her in two- and three-minute spurts to get the most out of her,” Merchant said. “She missed a couple point-blanks there.”
Junior forward Kalisha Keane was the only Spartan other than Thomas and DeHaan to make more than one field goal. She finished with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting.
For the Lady Lions, guard Tyra Grant led all scorers with 23 points. MSU sophomore forward Lykendra Johnson had a game-high 11 rebounds but struggled on the offensive end, hitting only 1-of-7 shots and missing multiple open layups.
The Spartans will look to avoid their fourth straight loss Thursday against Purdue at Breslin Center.
“I thought our fight was really, really good tonight,” Merchant said. “I thought we played good team basketball, I thought we fought really hard, so there’s a lot to build on from there, but we just have to finish the deal in the second half and shoot the ball better.”
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