Spartans Win Feast Week Tournament
Michigan State women’s basketball won the Acrisure Holiday Invitational after beating the Vanderbilt Commodores, 78-70, in the championship game.
Spartans forward Grace Vanslooten led all scorers with 25 points and recorded a double-double with ten rebounds. The junior forward recorded her 1,000th career points in the win.
The Spartans trailed in both games on their way to winning the Acrisure Holiday Invitational title.
First, the Spartans were down 16 points to the California Golden Bears late in the third quarter.
However, the Spartans would go on a run with the help of graduate forward Julia Ayrault, who led the Spartans with 22 points in the 78-72 victory. Ayrault was awarded the MVP of the Acrisure Classic.
Ayrault also scored her 1,000th career points the day before in the win over the Golden Bears. She is the first Spartan to record 1,000 points since former Spartans forward Mo Joiner reached that mark last season.
This is the second straight season the Spartans have won an in-season tournament title, after taking home first place in the Cherokee Invitational in 2023.
In head coach Robyn Fralick’s second season, the Spartans have started the season 8-0, tying the program record for the best start, including 2012-13 and 2020-21.
The Spartans offense is explosive, scoring 95 or more points in five of their eight games so far this season.
The Spartans hadn’t been in many close games before Wednesday’s matchup, as they led the county in point differential with a +50.5 average margin of victory.
After losing in the first round of the NCAA tournament the Spartans rebuilt their roster after the bulk of the offense departed this offseason.
Vanslooten, a transfer from Oregon, has been the engine for the Spartans' offense, scoring 17 points per game.
The Spartans' continued success will most likely result in a ranking in the AP Top 25 poll. Last week, the Spartans were just outside the ranking, receiving 25 votes.
The Spartans will begin the gauntlet of a tough conference schedule in December. Some of the best teams in the nation reside in the Big Ten including the No. 1 UCLA Bruins and No. 6 USC Trojans as new members.
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