Michigan State University
Pepperdine
No. 24 MSU Women's Basketball Dumps Pepperdine, 71-55
12/17/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 17, 2003
MALIBU, Calif. - The No. 24 Michigan State women's basketball team earned its third straight road victory, defeating Pepperdine, 71-55, Wednesday night, behind 12 points and a career-best 19 rebounds from sophomore Liz Shimek (Empire, Mich.). The Spartans improved to 7-1, while Pepperdine slipped to 2-5 while falling for the fourth time this season against a nationally-ranked team.
Sophomore Lindsay Bowen (Dansville, Mich.) scored a team-high 20 points, freshman Rene Haynes (Columbus, Ohio) added 14 and senior Julie Pagel (Utica, Mich.) had 10 for the Spartans to complement Shimek. The Spartans had a 43-32 rebounding advantage and shot 83.9 percent from the free throw line (26-of-31), including 14 straight made free throws at one point.
"I think our team showed great resolve," said MSU head coach Joanne P. McCallie. "We hung tough and played together. I thought we had great composure."
The Spartans were as hot as the California weather in the opening period, shooting 59.1 percent (13-of-22) to open a 40-26 halftime lead. The Spartans used a 12-0 run midway through the first half to pull away from a 13-13 tie and take control of the game. Haynes and Bowen both nailed three-pointers during the spurt, and Shimek added four of the 12 points.
The Spartans led by as many as 15 in the first half before settling for the 14-point halftime lead. Shimek nearly had a double-double by halftime, with 10 points, nine rebounds and three steals.
In the second period, the Spartans came out cold, scoring just six points in the first 11 minutes of the half as Pepperdine closed within 46-41. After the teams traded baskets, a Shimek layup started an 8-0 run that pushed the lead to 56-43 with 5:20 left. Pepperdine got within nine points at 61-52 with 2:17 remaining, but MSU scored 10 of the last 14 points to pull away.
Shimek's 19 rebounds were tied for the ninth most in a single game in MSU history, and the most by any Spartan since Kristin Rasmussen pulled down 20 rebounds Dec. 30, 1997 vs. Penn State.
"I can't say enough about the play of Liz Shimek," said McCallie. "Whenever we were flat, she came up with a big rebound or basket."
Despite its rebounding advantage, MSU allowed 22 second-chance points while scoring just 12, marking the first time the Spartans had been outscored in that category this season.
MSU finished the game shooting 47.6 percent from the field (20-of-42), while Pepperdine hit just 27.4 percent of its shots (17-of-62). The Waves' biggest advantage came in the turnover department, as the Spartans committed 22 turnovers to just 11 for Pepperdine.
MSU concludes its five-game road swing when the Spartans visit UCLA Friday, Dec. 19, at 7 p.m. Pacific time.
