No. 18/16 Spartans Host Northwestern on Senior Day

Wednesday, February 18

East Lansing, Mich.

6:30 PM

Michigan State University

Northwestern

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Photo by: Matthew Mitchell Photography

2/17/2026 6:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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Following the game, MSU will celebrate it six seniors.

EAST LANSING, Mich. - No. 18/16 Michigan State women's basketball will celebrate Senior Day on Wednesday, Feb. 18 against Northwestern. Tipoff time is set for 6:30 p.m. Jacob Maurer and Joe Dez will be on the call for B1G+. Following the game MSU will celebrate its six seniors: Jalyn Brown, Marah Dykstra, Emma Shumate, Grace VanSlooten, Abbey Kimball and Theryn Hallock.

• The Spartans look to snap a two-game losing streak when facing Northwestern. Michigan State fell to 20-6 overall and 9-6 in Big Ten play after a loss to No. 7 Michigan on the road on Feb. 15.

• Northwestern holds an overall record of 8-17 and 2-12 in Big Ten contests. Head coach Joe McKeown is in his final season of coaching after 18 years at Northwestern and 40 seasons overall.

• Against Michigan, Kennedy Blair dished out two assists, as she now has 137 assists on the season, needing just eight more to crack MSU's Top 10 single-season assists list, as Nia Clouden currently holds the No. 10 spot with 145 helpers in 2021-22.

• The Spartans still stand in the top 15 in several categories in the NCAA rankings. Michigan State is 12th in assist/turnover ranking (1.38) and 13th in assists per game (18.0 apg). MSU is also 12th in the NCAA in field goal percentage (.481) and 12th in turnover margin (7.50).

SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN
Northwestern has lost seven games in a row with its last win coming against Wisconsin on Jan. 15. Overall, the Wildcats are 8-17 overall and 2-12 in league play. Northwestern's two wins came against Rutgers and Wisconsin.

Grace Sullivan is third in the Big Ten and first on the team in scoring, averaging 21.9 ppg. Caroline Lau is first in the league in assists, averaging 8.4 apg. Overall, she has 211 assists this season. Lau is also 10th in assist/turnover ratio (2.05).

Northwestern is 17th in scoring, averaging 65.8 ppg. The Wildcats are 17th in scoring defense, allowing 74.4 ppg. Northwestern are eighth in assists per game with 17.5 apg.

Northwestern head coach Joe McKeown is in his 40th and final season at the helm of the Wildcats. He has an overall record of 441-154. He has been at Northwestern for 18 seasons with a record of 276-275.

SERIES HISTORY VS. THE WILDCATS
Michigan State holds the overall series lead over Northwestern 48-29. The Spartans have won the last four meetings, including the last two in East Lansing. MSU holds a strong 28-9 record at home, while the Wildcats are on top in Evanston 20-18. On neutral territory, MSU leads 2-0.

Last season on Feb. 2, five Spartans scored in double figures as the No. 16/17 Michigan State topped Northwestern, 89-75, at Welsh-Ryan Arena. MSU led by 20 points from forward Grace VanSlooten. It was her third 20-point game of the season with MSU improving to 3-0 in those games. Off the bench, graduate guard Nyla Hampton set a new season-high with 16 points, tying a season-high with two 3-pointers.

BLAZIN' BLAIR
Against Michigan on Feb. 15, redshirt-junior guard Kennedy Blair posted a palindromic 21 points and 12 rebounds for her second double-double in the last five games. Overall, it is Blair's sixth double-double of the season and her career.

Blair also dished out two assists, as she now has 137 assists on the season, needing just eight more to crack MSU's Top 10 single-season assists list, as Nia Clouden currently holds the No. 10 spot with 145 helpers in 2021-22.

DID YOU KNOW?
The Spartan defense swiped 11 steals against Michigan on Feb. 15 for their fifth-straight contest and sixth in the last seven outings with double-digit steals. Overall Sunday was MSU's 17th game this season out of the 22 games played in registering 10+ steals

ROBYN'S NEST
The Breslin Center has become home right away for head coach Robyn Fralick. She boasts a 36-7 record at home in three seasons at Michigan State. In her first season in 2023-24, the Spartans went 13-2 with their only losses coming to Nebraska and Ohio State. In 2024-25, MSU was also 13-2 with losses to Oregon and Michigan. So far this season, the Spartans are 10-3 at the Breslin Center.

BY THE NUMBERS vs. MICHIGAN
                No. 13/13 Michigan State was playing its second-straight Top 10 ranked opponent in taking on No. 7/7 Michigan on Sunday, after playing No. 2/2 UCLA last time out on Feb. 11. Sunday was also MSU's third Top 10 match-up in the last five games as part of facing off with four ranked opponents in the last five games, playing No. 9/9 Michigan on Feb. 1, then No. 22/19 Maryland on Feb. 4.
                Freshman guard Amy Terrian netted a pair of 3-pointers on Sunday for her second multi-triple outing in the last three games after her three triples at Penn State (2/7/26). Terrian registered her fifth game this season with two or more 3-pointers.

GETTING IN THE STARTING LINEUP
After using the same starting lineup for seven games, Michigan State used a different starting lineup against Clemson on Nov. 30. After an injury to Theryn Hallock, MSU went with the lineup for senior forward Grace VanSlooten, senior forward Marah Dykstra, senior guard Emma Shumate, junior guard Rashunda Jones and redshirt-sophomore guard Kennedy Blair. MSU is 2-1 with that lineup. MSU rolled out its third lineup against Indiana State with Blair, Jones, Van Slooten, Inés Sotelo and Sara Sambolić, which is now 1-0. The Spartans changed it up for a fourth time against No. 15 Ole Miss and Rutgers with VanSlooten, Jones, Blair, Sotelo and Isaline Alexander making the starting five.

Yet another lineup was debuted against Indiana in Blair, Jones, VanSlooten, Sotelo and Jalyn Brown with that group improving to 8-5 after a loss to No. 7 Michigan on Feb. 15. Overall, MSU has had five different starting lineups. VanSlooten, Blair and Jones are the only three Spartans to start all 25 games.

EVERYONE IS NOTICING GRACE
Senior forward Grace VanSlooten was named to the 10 Mid-Season nominees for the Cheryl Miller Small Forward of the Year Award. VanSlooten is one of four Big Ten players named to the watch list, including Maryland's Yarden Garzon, UCLA's Gabriela Jaquez and Michigan's Olivia Olson.

She was also named to the Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Late-Season Women's College Player of the Team on Feb. 17. She joined seven other Big Ten players, including UCLA's Lauren Betts, USC's Jazzy Davidson, Iowa's Ava Heiden, Maryland's Oluchi Okanawa, Washington's Sayvia Sellers and Michigan's Olivia Olson and Syla Swords.

PACKING THE HOUSE
The 11,635 fans that packed into the Breslin Center against Michigan on Feb. 1 were the most during the three seasons of the Robyn Fralick era. It was the most since Feb. 23, 2020 against Michigan. Overall, it was No. 15 all-time at MSU.

SHOOT-MATE STRIKES AGAIN
The Spartan sharp-shooter Emma Shumate's current 3-point percentage of 42.9 percent (54-of-126) is currently No. 4 on MSU's single-season 3-pointers list, trailing Lindsay Bowen (2002-03) at 46.4 percent (77-of-166) and Moira Joiner (2023-24) at 44.2 percent (80-of-181) and Lindsay Bowen again at No. 3 at 43.0 (83-193).

ANATOMY OF A COMEBACK
The Spartans' 16-point deficit against Penn State came at 45-29 with 1:32 left in the second quarter, and MSU out-scored the Penn State by a palindromic 52-25 from that point on, including 48-25 in the second half, for the 81-70 win.

Michigan State reeled off a 20-0 scoring run spanning the latter half of the third quarter and the first part of the fourth quarter, rallying from down 52-38 after a PSU bucket with 6:26 on the clock, the Spartans then held the Lady Lions scoreless over the next 7:38 of the game, taking a 58-52 lead at the 9:10 mark, before PSU scored with 8:48 left.

GRACE IS A MODEL OF CONSISTENCY
Senior forward Grace VanSlooten has 197 points and 102 rebounds in the last 12 games, despite being held to eight points vs. UCLA (2/11/26). VanSlooten is now averaging 16.4 points and 8.5 rebounds per game over the last 12 outings, as part of averaging 15.2 ppg and 6.7 rpg for the season.

LOOKING AT THE NET
In the current women's basketball NET ranking, the Spartans stand No. 15. They are fifth among Big Ten schools behind No. 2 UCLA, No. 6 Michigan, No. 9 Minnesota, No. 12 Iowa and No. 14 Maryland. UConn stands No. 1.

BLUE BLOODS
Michigan State is one of eight schools in the country to have both its women's and men's teams ranked in the Associated Press top 25. The Spartans join Michigan as the only two teams in the Big Ten. Vanderbilt, UConn, Duke, Louisville, North Carolina, Texas Tech and Kentucky are the other seven schools with both teams ranked.

HAVE TO PLAY THE BEST TO BE THE BEST
Overall, No. 7/7 Michigan was the Spartans' eighth ranked match-up of the season. Michigan State is now 3-5 vs. ranked opponents, starting with a neutral court win over No. 15/15 Ole Miss, 66-49 (12/22/25 in Cherokee, North Carolina), a road win at No. 23/23 Washington, 82-67, and a home win over No. 24/RV Nebraska, 73-71 (1/15/26), with losses at No. 11/13 Iowa, 75-68 (1/18/25), home loss vs. No. 9/9 Michigan, 94-91 in OT (2/1/26), a home loss to No. 22/19 Maryland, 86-70 (1/4/26), then last Wednesday's 86-63 loss to No. 2/2 UCLA, and then loss to No. 7/7 Michigan on Feb. 15.

SPARTANS VS. THE NCAA
After 26 games, Michigan State stands 12th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (1.38). The Spartans are 11th in the NCAA and third in the Big Ten in scoring offense (83.7 ppg). MSU is 13th in the country in field goal percentage, 48.1 percent and 12th in turnover margin (7.50). Redshirt-sophomore guard Kennedy Blair is 27th in the NCAA in assists (137). Emma Shumate is 21st in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (42.9 percent).

STRONG BENCH
The Spartans' 59 points scored by their bench was more than Eastern Illinois' entire team scoring of 53 points on Nov. 20. Against DePaul on Dec. 14, the Spartan bench scored 44 of 90 points. MSU kept that trend up against Indiana State with 64 bench points. This season, the MSU bench has out-scored opponents 673-442. The Spartans are 15-1 this season when their bench out-scored their opponent.

SMITH SELECTED TO WBCA NGI
Michigan State assistant coach Bianca Smith was selected by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) to join the 2026 class of the WBCA Next Generation Institute.

The WBCA Next Generation Institute is a high-level education program for experienced assistant coaches who aspire to become collegiate head coaches. Now in its fourth year, the curriculum of the WBCA Next Generation Institute focuses on the CEO attributes needed to lead a program and be a problem-solver in today's ever-changing landscape of higher education and the enterprise of intercollegiate athletics.

She joins Latara King from Washington and Abby Sharp from Iowa as Big Ten coaches participating.

FUTURE IS BRIGHT
Lilly Williams became the first future Spartan since Sidney Cooks in 2017 to be named a McDonald's All-American. Williams plays at Howell high school for her senior season after winning National HomeSchool Christian National Championships.

JONES EARNING HER FLOWERS
Michigan State women's basketball junior guard Rashunda Jones was named to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List. She was one of 25 players named to the watch list that honors the top defensive players in Division I.

Jones is one of four Big Ten players named to the watch list, along with UCLA's Lauren Betts, Ohio State's Kennedy Cambridge and USC's Jazzy Davidson.

NO NIGHTS OFF IN THE BIG TEN
The Big Ten continues to be one of the toughest conferences in the country with five teams in the top 15 in the rankings. In the AP poll, UCLA is No. 2, while Michigan is No. 6. Ohio State, Iowa and Maryland are No. 10 and No. 13 and No. 14, respectively. Michigan State stands No. 18 and Minnesota entered the polls at No. 23. Washington and Illinois are also receiving votes.

BIG TIME BIG TEN NUMBERS
The Spartans are third in the Big Ten in scoring offense, averaging 83.7 ppg and fifth in scoring margin (+18.7). Michigan State is also third in turnover margin (+7.50). The Spartans stand fifth in assists per game, averaging 18.0 apg and third in steals per game with 11.7 spg.

Individually, Rashunda Jones is third in the league in steals per game, averaging 2.31 spg, while Kennedy Blair is fifth (2.19 spg). Kennedy Blair is also fourth in assists with 5.27 apg. Emma Shumate is sixth in the league in 3-point field goal percentage (.429).

FRALICK REACHES A MILESTONE
Michigan State head coach Robyn Fralick reached a career milestone against Illinois on Jan. 4. With the win, she earned her 250th career win. She now holds a 256-101 record in 11 seasons as a head coach. She has won 64 games at MSU.

FINDING THE MAGIC NUMBER
Michigan State's 102 points against Oakland on Nov. 23 marked the Spartans' sixth time out of six games scoring 90+ points. MSU's 90 points against DePaul on Dec. 14 was the first time reaching 90 in the last four games, after the Spartans had scored 90 or more points in each of the first six games of the season. MSU is now 7-1 when scoring 90+ points with the only loss coming against Michigan on Feb. 1.

The Spartans' 115 points in the win against Indiana State on Dec. 21 was MSU's second-most of the season, behind the season-high 125 points in the season-opener vs. Mercyhurst (11/4/25). It was Michigan State's fourth 100-point game, moving to 4-0.

BRINGING HOME THE HARDWARE
By winning the 2025 Cherokee Invitational crown, Michigan State not only defended its 2023 Cherokee Invitational championship, but also collected its second tournament title of the season after winning the Baha Mar Hoops Nassau Championship of the Junkanoo Division in the Bahamas on Nov. 30. It is also MSU's fourth tournament title in the last three seasons after winning the 2023 Cherokee Invitational and the 2024 Acrisure Classic crown last season in Palm Springs, Calif.

BRINGING HOME THE GOLD
Three players earned gold medals for their home countries this summer. Grace VanSlooten won the FIBA Women's Americup for Team USA. Marah Dykstra won gold for Canada in the FIBA 3x3 Junior Pan American Games. Inés Sotelo and Spain won a gold medal in the 2025 FIBA Eurobasket.

O CAPTAIN! MY CAPTAIN!
Michigan State head coach Robyn Fralick has announced senior forward Grace VanSlooten and senior guard Abbey Kimball as team captains, as voted on by the players on the 2025-26 women's basketball team. This is the first time that either has been named a captain for Michigan State. VanSlooten is in her second season with MSU after transferring from Oregon. Kimball is in her fourth season as a Spartan.

ROBYN FRALICK RADIO SHOW
Michigan State women's basketball head coach Robyn Fralick started her weekly radio call-in show, the Robyn Fralick Radio Show, on Nov. 18 at One North Kitchen and Bar. Coach Fralick joins host Dalton Shetler, the Spartans' play-by-play voice, from 12-1 p.m., for an in-depth look into the MSU women's basketball program.

Radio Show Dates
Tuesday, Feb. 24