Michigan State University
Illinois (Big Ten Tournament)
Spartans Defeat Illini In Big Ten Quarterfinals, 61-50
3/4/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 4, 2005
INDIANAPOLIS - Kristin Haynie sensed eighth-ranked Michigan State was in trouble and Illinois was worn down Friday.
So Haynie took the game into her own hands.
Haynie, a senior point guard, scored seven of her 13 points in overtime and sparked an aggressive defense that shut out Illinois over the final five minutes, leading Michigan State to a 61-50 victory in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals.
"We love overtime," Kelli Roehrig said. "We were ready, we were focused, we knew what we had to do."
To Spartans coach Joanne P. McCallie, it was a fitting tribute to a senior class that has won more games in a career and a season than any group in school history.
Now Haynie and the Spartans, the second seed and regular-season co-champs with Ohio State, will try to win their 11th straight against either No. 23 Penn State or Iowa in Sunday's semifinals. Another win would give the Spartans their first title game appearance.
Roehrig finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds and Victoria Lucas-Perry added 14 points.
McCallie couldn't have asked for a more gutsy performance from her team, which improved to 6-10 all-time in the tournament.
"That was just a great basketball game and it was exactly what the doctor ordered," she said.
Friday's victory came in uncharacteristic fashion, though.
Michigan State, which trailed for just 4:28 in its nine previous wins, struggled to take control, had to rally from a first-half deficit and failed to pull away until Illinois (16-12) finally wore down in overtime.
The Illini were led by Tiffanie Guthrie, who had 20 points and 10 rebounds, but she missed a potential game-winning shot just before the buzzer to force overtime. Angelina Williams added 12 points and Erin Wigley had 10 points and 11 rebounds.
Still, it wasn't enough to prevent Illinois coach Theresa Grentz from missing the semifinals for the fourth straight year.
"I thought each one of the players gave everything they had," Grentz said. "They played as well as they could."
The difference Friday was depth and defense.
Michigan State routinely forced Illinois to run down the shot clock and rarely gave up open looks. What kept the Illini close was a 26-17 advantage in offensive rebounds.
But in overtime, everything changed. The Illini were muzzled on offense, while Michigan State repeatedly got to loose balls and offensive rebounds.
Even the fiery Grentz seemed to acknowledged the Illini couldn't keep up after quickly falling behind.
"They hit a 3, that's always tough," Grentz said. "Then they hit a 2 and it went to five. We tried to regroup and that gave them the momentum."
Michigan State appeared to right itself early in the second half when Lindsay Bowen made her first basket with 17:10 left to give the Spartans a 32-28 lead. Bowen finished with 11 points.
Illinois countered with a 7-0 run to retake the lead at 37-34.
Lucas-Perry then tied the score with a 3-pointer, starting a stretch in which the teams were tied eight times in the last 10:45 of regulation. Bowen's breakaway layup with 1:05 tied the score for the last time at 50.
The Illini had a chance to win on the final possession, but Guthrie's 5-footer from the left baseline bounced off the rim and Michigan State grabbed the rebound to force overtime.
Then Michigan State took over.
Roehrig opened the overtime with two free throws and Haynie's scoring flurry sealed the game.
"We haven't been in situations like that for most of the season," Haynie said. "We knew we weren't playing our kind of basketball, so we wanted to get the game into overtime. "Obviously, it was a big test for us."
MICHAEL MAROT
AP Sports Writer
