EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State women’s basketball earned a signature win, defeating No. 4/3 Indiana 83-78, Thursday afternoon in front of a raucous crowd at the Breslin Center.
The Spartans handed the Hoosiers their first loss of the season, as Indiana falls to 12-1 overall and 2-1 in Big Ten action. With the win, the Spartans have captured three-straight victories, improving to 9-5 this season and 1-2 in league play.
Four Spartans reached double figures in the game that also saw MSU share the ball well. Graduate senior Kamaria McDaniel led Michigan State with 24 points for her fourth 20-point performance of the season. Senior forward Taiyier Parks and sophomore guard Matilda Ekh both scored 18 points, with Parks tying her career high. Sophomore guard DeeDee Hagemann had an all-around solid performance with 15 points, eight assists and five steals, as MSU forced IU into a season-high 21 turnovers.
Indiana was led by a game-high 32 points and 12 rebounds from Mackenzie Holmes.
Michigan State jumped out to an early 7-3 lead after a layup by McDaniel. Following a pair of Chloe Moore McNeil free throws, IU took a 12-11 advantage, which would be the final lead for the Hoosiers in the game. The Spartans continued to push the pace, using an 8-0 run to jump out to a 19-12 advantage with under two minutes remaining in the first quarter. With solid play on both ends of the floor, the Spartans led, 19-15 after the first 10 minutes.
MSU scored the first four points of the second quarter, leading to an early Indiana timeout. The Spartans kept the Hoosiers off the scoreboard for over two minutes before a Sydney Parrish trey stopped the drought. Hagemann responded with a 3-pointer of her own with 1:07 left, which was MSU’s first of the game to make it a 35-29 game. Holmes scored her 14th point of the half right at the buzzer to tighten it to a 35-33 MSU lead at halftime.
Four-straight baskets and a pair of Hagemann free throws gave the Spartans their first double-digit lead of the day at 50-39 with less than four minutes remaining in the third quarter. Indiana responded with 6-0 run of its own to make it a five-point game at 50-45. Feeling the momentum change, Hagemann later came up big with a four-point play to make it 57-50 with 23 seconds left in the third stanza.
Indiana came out hot in the fourth quarter quickly tying the game at 58-58 with 7:39 remaining. The team exchanged blows for much of the period with Indiana tying the game twice. The Spartan continued to find a response and were 11-for-15 from the charity stripe in the fourth quarter to seal the win. Parks scored 10 of her 18 points in the final 10 minutes of the game.
Michigan State led the game for 35:49 of the contest, trailing for just 1:40, and there were seven ties.
The Spartans will open the 2023 portion of the schedule at Northwestern on Monday, Jan. 2 at 8 p.m. ET.
Michigan State Women’s Basketball Post-Game Notes: vs. Indiana
• 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, last season 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.
• Thursday’s 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.
• MSU has beaten Indiana in two of the last three match-ups after a 69-61 win on March 11, 2021 in the Big Ten Tournament … the Spartans have also beaten the Hoosiers in the last two meetings in East Lansing, as part of seven of the last eight meetings, now with a 24-11 advantage in Spartan home games in the series … Michigan State now leads the all-times series with Indiana, 49-32.
• MSU’s starting line-up of graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel, sophomore guard/forward Matilda Ekh, sophomore guard DeeDee Hagemann, sophomore forward Isaline Alexander and redshirt-senior guard/forward Tory Ozment was the Spartans’ third-straight game with that starting five … it is MSU’s fifth different starting line-up.
• The Spartans had four players in double-figures led by graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel’s 24 points, while starting sophomore guard/forward Matilda Ekh and senior forward Taiyier Parks both scoring 18 points, with Parks coming off the bench, part of MSU’s 20-4 bench scoring advantage … sophomore guard DeeDee Hagemann rounded out the four Spartans in double-digits … the Spartans are now 5-0 when four players net double-figures.
• Michigan State shot 55.6 percent (30-of-54) from the field, marking the Spartans’ second-highest field goal percentage performance of the season, trailing only 56.7 percent (38-of-67) vs. Western Michigan (11/13/22) … Thursday was MSU’s fifth game making at least half of its field goals, and first time over 50 percent in a Big Ten contest.
• With Parks netting 18 points leading to the 20-4 bench scoring advantage, MSU is now 9-2 when the Spartan bench outscores the opposition’s bench.
• The Spartan defense forced Indiana into 21 turnovers, which was a season-high for the Hoosiers, topping their previous season-high of 18 miscues vs. Bowling Green (11/17/22) … Indiana has had three games with single-digit turnovers this season and Thursday was only the third time that Indiana has topped 16 miscues.
• Michigan State made four 3-pointers Thursday, not only the fewest in a Big Ten game this season, but also the second-fewest in a victory … it also tied the second-fewest triples this season, behind a season-low two treys in a win vs. Purdue Fort Wayne (11/10/22) and a loss vs. Iowa State (11/24/22), matching four in a loss vs. Georgia Tech (12/1/22).
• Graduate guard Kamaria McDaniel’s 24 points was her third-highest of the season and her fourth 20-point outing this season, but her first 20-point game in a Victory for MSU, as her previous three outings came in Spartan losses … McDaniel has netted 20 points in four of the last seven games, as her three other occasions happened in three-straight games, 28 vs. Oregon (11/27/22), 26 vs. Georgia Tech (12/1/22) and 22 vs. Purdue (12/5/22) … the 24 points was McDaniel’s second double-figure outing in a row and 10th overall this season … McDaniel made 10 field goals, the most in a B1G game and tied her second-most this season behind 12 vs. Oregon and matching 10 vs. Georgia Tech.
• McDaniel’s 24 points is also the most scored by a Spartan in a Big Ten game this season, topping her own mark of 22 vs. Purdue (12/5/22) … the 24 points by McDaniel was also the second-most that Indiana has allowed by an opposing player both overall and in a B1G game, behind 33 points by Makira Cook of Illinois (12/4/22).
• The 18 points scored by senior forward Taiyier Parks tied her career-high for the second time this season, matching 18 vs. Purdue Fort Wayne (11/10/22) and was her first game in double-figures since that outing, after being held to single digits in the previous 10 games … Thursday was Parks’ third double-digit scoring outing of the season and 26th of her career … Parks also pulled down eight rebounds, the most in a Big Ten game and the second-most this season behind nine boards vs. Purdue Fort Wayne … additionally, Parks made a season-high four free throws on six attempts, also the second-most this season behind seven vs. Florida A&M (11/17/22).
• Sophomore guard/forward Matilda Ekh tallied 18 points for her third-straight double-digit scoring outing and ninth of the season … the 18 points was Ekh’s second-highest scoring game this season behind a 20-points outing vs. Western Michigan (11/13/22) … Ekh drained her lone 3-point attempt, as she has made at least one triple in all 13 games she has played this season … Ekh also distributed three assists, tying her second-high for the third time this season and her seventh game this year with multiple helpers.
• Sophomore guard DeeDee Hagemann’s 15 point game was her fourth double-figure contest this season and 13th of her career … it was her first double-figure game in the last seven outings, while posting her second-most points, behind her season-high 19 vs. Western Michigan (11/13/22) … Hagemann netted three 3-pointers, also her second-most of the season, trailing a season-high five vs. WMU, and her third game with multiple triples … she also dished out a season-high eight assists, topping her previous top mark of seven helpers vs. Georgia Tech (12/1/22) … Hagemann swiped a career-high five steals, bettering her previous season-mark of three swipes vs. Florida A&M (11/17/22) and bettering her the previous career mark of four, done twice, last vs. Ohio State (2/27/22).
COURTESY MICHIGAN STATE ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
