No. 24 Nebraska women’s basketball fell just short in a road upset bid as No. 16 Michigan State hung to defeat the Cornhuskers, 73-71, Thursday at East Lansing, Mich.
Grace Van Slooten led the Spartans (17-1/6-1 Big Ten) with 22 points on eight-for-14 shooting. Rashunda Jones scored 15 while Kennedy Blair added 14 for MSU. Amiah Hargrove led Nebraska (14-4/3-4 Big Ten) with 21 points on nine-for-11 shooting. Britt Prince added 16 points. The Spartans dominated the paint, outscoring the Huskers in the paint, 46-34.
Michigan State built a 13-5 lead midway through the first quarter. Nebraska cut the Spartans’ lead to 19-16 late in the first quarter, but MSU led 24-19 after one quarter. The Huskers went on a 6-0 run to start the second quarter, taking a 25-24 lead. Nebraska led by as many as four, 33-29, with 2:45 remaining in the half, but Michigan State closed the second quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 36-33 lead to halftime.
The Spartans started the second half on a 9-2 run, opening a 44-35 lead with 6:14 to go in the third quarter. In all, MSU owned the middle portion of the game to the tune of a 16-2 run over the middle 6:30 of the game. But the Huskers fought back. A 7-0 run late in the third quarter tied the game at 47 with 3:18 to go in the period. The game was tied at 47, 49, 51 and 53. Michigan State led 55-54 on a Van Slooten layup in the final seconds of the third quarter.
The Spartans pushed the lead to four twice in the first half of the fourth quarter, but a 7-0 Nebraska run gave the Huskers a 67-64 lead with 3:32 to play in regulation. After Nebraska led 69-66 with 1:41 to go, a Jalyn Brown three-pointer for MSU tied the game at 69. Prince made a jumper to give the Huskers a 71-69 lead with 48 seconds to go, but then two free throws by Jones tied the game at 71 with 39 seconds remaining. After a Nebraska turnover, the Spartans’ Juliann Woodard grabbed an offensive rebound, was fouled, and hit two free throws to give Michigan State a 73-71 lead with five seconds remaining. Nebraska turned the ball over on its final possession, and time ran out on NU.
The loss was Nebraska’s fourth in six games, with all four losses coming to ranked opposition. The Huskers are next in action Wednesday at PInnacle Bank Arena against Wisconsin. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., with pregame coverage beginning at 6 p.m. on B-107.3.