Michigan State University Athletics
11/14/2026 10:45:00 AM | Women's Basketball
This is only the second meeting between the teams
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Â Michigan State women's basketball is back on the road for the second time in three games. The Spartans will take on Harvard on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 2 p.m. at Lavietes Pavilion. Mike Basile and Sam Lebowitz will be on the call for ESPN+.
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• MSU improved to 3-0 with an impressive 91-50 win over in-state foe Oakland on Wednesday. Five Spartans reached double figures in the victory led by freshman forward Kathy-Emma Otto's first career double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
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• Harvard is 3-1 coming to the game with three-straight wins. MSU is the second Big Ten opponent for the Crimson, falling to Minnesota in Minneapolis, 82-62 on Nov. 2. This is only the second meeting between the two teams after MSU defeated Harvard in the first round of 2025 NCAA Tournament in Raleigh.
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• Against Oakland, five different Spartans brought down at least five boards, led by 10 from forward Kathy-Emma Otto. Guard Theryn Hallock had eight, while guard Monique Bobongie added seven. Guard Kennedy Blair and center Lilly Williams had six and five, respectively.
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• The Spartans defense has been strong so far this season, allowing only 52.7 points per game. Michigan State is first in the Big Ten in steals with 15.7 spg. MSU is also tied for eighth in blocks with 4.3 bpg.
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SCOUTING HARVARD
Harvard is once again off to a fast start with a 3-1 record this season. Michigan State is the second Big Ten team that the Crimson has faced this season. Harvard fell to No. 18/17 Minnesota in Minneapolis on Nov. 3, 82-62. Since then Harvard has captured home wins against Boston College and UMass, as well as a road victory over Holy Cross.
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The Crimson have three players averaging in double figures led by Karlee White, who is averaging 16.0 ppg. Abigail Wright is second in scoring with 15.4 ppg, while Olivia Jones is third, scoring 10.8 ppg. Jones is leading on the boards with 7.8 rebounds per game.
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Overall, the Crimson are scoring 71.0 ppg, while only allowing 60.0 ppg. Harvard is second in the Ivy League in rebounding with 39.9 rpg. The Crimson are third in the league in turnover margin (+2.75).
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Harvard is led by Carrie Moore who is in her fifth season. She holds an impressive 83-42 overall record. Moore is familiar with the Mitten State, as she is a 2007 graduate of Western Michigan.
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SERIES HISTORY VS. THE CRIMSON
The Spartans and the Crimson have a very brief history, meeting just once in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. Michigan State defeated Harvard, 64-50, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Raleight. It was first NCAA Tournament win for MSU head coach Robyn Fralick. Harmoni Turner led all scorers with 24 points, while Grace Van Slooten scored 17 points for Michigan State.
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NO FEAR FRESHMEN
Michigan State's four freshmen have showed they are ready to play on the collegiate level. Freshman forward Kathy-Emma Otto recorded her first collegiate double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds against Oakland on Nov. 11. Fellow freshmen Monique Bobongie had her first double-figure scoring game with 15 points. Freshman center Lilly Williams, who has battled early injury, had a breakout game against the Golden Grizzlies with 12 points and three blocks. Freshman Emma Broliron has played in all three games.
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LOOKING TO JOIN THE CLUB
Graduate guard Theryn Hallock is looking to join an exclusive Michigan State club. She is looking to become the 32nd member of the Spartan 1,000-point club. She has currently scored 976 points in her five seasons with MSU. She is just 24 points shy of reaching 1,000 points.
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THE VETS LEAD THE WAY
Against Toledo, junior guard Kennedy Blair recorded the first double-double of the season for Michigan State with 28 points and 11 rebounds. She now has seven career double-doubles and has scored in double figures 31 times during her career. Senior guard Theryn Hallock also reached double figures for the 47th time of her career. Blair and Hallock are the only two Spartans to reach double figures in all three games this season.
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STARTING THE HALF HOT
The 36 points scored by the Spartans against Valpo on Nov. 3 was a school record for points scored in the third period. The previous highs was 35 against Cincinnati in 2015. Overall, the most points MSU has scored in a quarter was 37 in the first quarter against Minnesota in 2016.
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THRIVING THERYN
Since returning from a season-ending foot injury last season, graduate guard Theryn Hallock has been stellar. Against Oakland on Nov. 11, she set a season high with 18 points and a career high with eight rebounds. She has scored in double figures in all three games so far this season. She is averaging 14.7 points and 5.3 rebounds per game so far this season.
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AROUND THE BIG TEN
The Spartans are first in the Big Ten in steals, averaging 15.7 spg. MSU is also sixth in turnover margin with Michigan (+8.3). MSU is also seventh in assists, averaging 19.3 apg.
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Individually, junior guard Kennedy Blair is fourth in assists, averaging 7.3 ppg. Blair is also tied for 10th in assist/turnover ratio (3.5). Graduate guard Theryn Hallock and freshman forward Kathy-Emma Otto are both tied for third in steals with 3.7 steals per game. .
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SPARTAN FUN FACTS
Freshmen Kathy-Emma Otto and Monique have started the first three games of the season. It is the first time since the 2021-22 season that MSU has started a pair of freshman. That season guard DeeDee Hagemann and forward Matilda Ekh both became regular starters that season.
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STARTING STRONG
For the second-straight season sophomore guard Amy Terrian has started the season with a double-digit scoring performance. In her MSU debut last season against Mercyhurst she scored 15 points. She duplicated that against Valparaiso on Nov. 3 with 15 points going 5-for-6 from the beyond the arc.
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COMING OUT OF THE GATES
Michigan State has won its 13th-straight season-openers and four in a row under head coach Robyn Fralick. MSU's last season-opening loss was on Nov. 11, 2013 at #6/7 Notre Dame. The Spartans have won 17-consecutive home openers, as their last loss in the first home game of the season was on Nov. 19, 2009 vs. #5/6 Notre Dame.
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O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!
MSU head Robyn Fralick coach announced captains for the 2026-27 season. The Spartans picked their captains for the season in senior guard Theryn Hallock, junior guard Kennedy Blair and junior forward Tabitha Betson.
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LAST TIME OUT
Michigan State women's basketball used a balanced attack on both ends of the court to stop Oakland, 91-40, in the Breslin Center on Wednesday night in the Spartans' Hoops for Troops game.
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Five different Spartans reached double figures led by graduate guard Theryn Hallock's 18 points. She added eight rebounds and four assists. Freshman forward Kathy-Emma Otto earned her first collegiate double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, along with three steals. Freshman Monique Bobongie also added 15 points with seven boards, while junior guard Kennedy Blair was close to a triple-double with 10 points, eight assists and six rebounds. The fifth MSU freshman in double digits was freshman center Lilly Williams, who scored 12 points in 15 minutes.
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LOOKING AT THE CALENDAR
This is the earliest season opener for Michigan State opening the year on Nov. 3. Last season, the Spartans first game of the season was Nov. 4, while the season opener in 2024-25 was Nov. 5.
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AROUND THE CORNER
After taking on Harvard on Nov. 15, Michigan State will return home to take on Sacred Heart on Thursday, Nov. 19 at 6:30 p.m.
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BRINGING HOME THE GOLD
Last summer, MSU head coach Robyn Fralick won a gold medal as an assistant coach for the USA Women's U18 National Team at the 2026 FIBA U18 Women's AmeriCup in Irapuato, Mexico.
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BLAIR NAMED TO WATCH LIST
Kennedy Blair was tabbed to the 2027 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and WBCA Preseason Watch List for the Nancy Lieberman Award.
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Blair was a Second-Team All-Big Ten honoree last year after finishing fourth in the B1G in assists last season, dishing out 5.2 assists per game. Blair ranks second in the conference among returning point guards back in 2026-27, behind Katie Fiso of Oregon, who was second in the B1G with 6.2 apg.
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Additionally, Blair ranked third in the league in steals with 2.4 spg. She led MSU and ranked in the top 20 in the conference in scoring at 14.5 ppg. Blair was also one of two Spartans to start all 32 games. Off the court, Blair earned CSC Academic All-District and Academic All-Big Ten accolades.
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The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame also announced the 2027 Bob Cousy Award for the men's basketball top point guard, and MSU men's basketball redshirt junior guard Jeremy Fears Jr. was one of 20 players selected to the watch list. also had one player on both lists.
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INTERNATIONAL SQUAD
The 2026-27 Spartan team has a true international flavor. This season, MSU welcomes Australians junior Tabitha Betson and freshman Monique Bobongie. Betson comes to Michigan State after two years at Colorado. MSU also adds a pair from France in freshmen Kathy-Emma Otto and Emma Broliron. The Spartans also welcome back senior Sara Sambolić from Slovenia and graduate student Isaline Alexander.
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