Michigan State Notes

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April 5, 2005

KANSAS CITY REGIONAL CHAMPION: Michigan State "Spartans"
(Ranked No. 6 AP and No. 5 USA Today/ESPN)
RECORD: 33-4 (14-2 in Big Ten Conference - co-champion with Ohio State); automatic bid No. 1 seed
ROAD TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: W, 73-41 vs. Alcorn State; W, 61-59 vs. Southern California; W, 76-64 vs. Vanderbilt; W, 76-69 vs. Stanford; W, 68-64 vs. Tennessee; L, 84-62 vs. Baylor.
WOMEN'S FINAL FOUR APPEARANCES: 1 (2005)
WOMEN'S FINAL FOUR RECORD: 1-1 (2005)
NCAA TOURNAMENT RECORD: 8-6 (six appearances)

TEAM

Michigan State tied an NCAA championship game record for fewest rebounds (a season-low 22). Connecticut also had 22 rebounds in its 2003 title game win over Tennessee.
The Spartans had a combined total of 55 rebounds in their two Final Four games, the lowest two-game total in NCAA Women's Final Four. Connecticut previously held the mark with 59 rebounds in 2003.
The 22-point margin of defeat this evening (84-62) was Michigan State's largest of the season. The Spartans' prior biggest loss was a 17-point setback at Penn State (73-56) on Jan. 23 - also their last loss before tonight.
Tonight marks Michigan State's worst loss since Jan. 28, 2001, when it lost by 48 points (97-49) to Penn State. It's also the Spartans' first 20-point loss since Jan. 24, 2002, when they fell to Iowa, 75-55.
MSU allowed a season-high 84 points tonight (previous high was 76 by Penn State in an 83-76 Spartan victory). It also was just the fourth time all year Michigan State allowed more than 70 points in a game (2-2 in those games - wins over Notre Dame and Penn State; losses to TCU and Baylor). In addition, it's the most points allowed by MSU since Nov. 24, 2002, when it dropped an 86-84 decision at home to Miami (Ohio).
The Spartans' nine assists tonight was their second-lowest mark of the season. Their low-water total was five at Indiana on Jan. 30.
Michigan State's three offensive rebounds were a season-low (previous: six vs. Minnesota on March 7) and marked only the fourth time all season the Spartans were held to single digits on the offensive glass (3-1 record).
Michigan State won a school-record 33 games this season. The previous record was 23 games, set back in 1976-77. Incidentally, this season also marked only the sixth 20-win campaign in school history (second in a row following a 22-9 mark last year) and the second time the Spartans posted back-to-back 20-win seasons (also 1976-77 and 1977-78).
MSU had its school-record 17-game winning streak snapped with tonight's 84-62 loss to Baylor. Prior to this evening, the Spartans' last loss came on Jan. 23 at Penn State (73-56). The previous Michigan State record for consecutive victories was 11, set during the 1976-77 season.
Prior to this season, the Spartans had not advanced beyond the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Spartans end this season 13-2 against ranked opponents (4-2 vs. top-10 foes), more than doubling the previous school record for victories over Top 25 teams (five in both 1990-91 and 1996-97). MSU's only other loss to a ranked team this season was a 68-54 setback at No. 9 Ohio State on Jan. 6.
After leading at halftime in 28 of its first 33 games (27-1 record), Michigan State trailed at the half in its last four games (3-1 record).

INDIVIDUAL

Senior guard Kristin Haynie had nine steals in MSU's two Final Four games, tying Old Dominion's Ticha Penicheiro (1998) for the fourth-highest two-game mark in NCAA Women's Final Four history (since 1988). Three players share the record of 11 combined thefts - Auburn's Ruthie Bolton (1988), Ohio State's Averrill Roberts (1993) and Notre Dame's Niele Ivey (2001).
Senior guard Kristin Haynie finishes her MSU career with a school-record 574 assists, while winding up second on the school's single-season assist chart with 189 handouts this year.
Senior guard Kristin Haynie ended this season with 117 steals, a new MSU single-season record. She also departs with the school's career steals record (346).
Junior guard Lindsay Bowen finished with a single-season school-record 83 three-pointers this year. She also has 226 treys in her career, also a school record.
Junior forward Liz Shimek finished with 546 points this season, tying Maxann Reese's school record for points in a season (Reese did it in 1998-99).
Junior forward Liz Shimek also ended up setting new single-season school records for field goals (217) and rebounds (335).

MISCELLANEOUS

The Big Ten Conference is now 2-2 all-time in the NCAA women's basketball national championship game. In 1993, Ohio State lost to Texas Tech, 84-82 in Atlanta. In 1999, Purdue won the conference's only national championship, downing Duke, 62-45 in San Jose. Then, in 2001, Purdue returned to the title game, losing to Notre Dame, 68-66 in St. Louis.

Players Mentioned

Lindsay Bowen

Liz Shimek

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