Tag: Michigan State Spartans

Duke softball played one of the most impressive games you’ll ever see on Saturday night

The Blue Devils smacked two grand slams and star pitcher Jala Wright struck out 14 of the 18 batters she faced in Saturday’s 22-0 win over Michigan State.

If you weren’t paying attention to Duke softball on Saturday evening, you missed something special.

The Blue Devils took down Michigan State by mercy rule in just five innings, but that’s not the impressive part. Duke won by 22 (yes, 22) runs after the team strung together 19 hits at the plate, including two grand slams, and pitcher Jala Wright struck out 14 of the 18 batters she faced.

If you want to be even more impressed, all of Duke’s runs came in the first three innings.

Wright, who now boasts a 0.51 ERA after 27.2 innings in the circle this season, let up a single and a walk in the Spartans’ first two at-bats of the evening. She forced a pop-up for the first out of the night before she struck out the next eight Michigan State batters in a row. There was a stretch from the bottom of the first to the bottom of the fourth that included literally nothing but strikeouts for the Spartans.

Wright’s crazy streak came to an end when she allowed a walk to begin the fourth inning. So she just started a new one, striking out the last six Spartans batters to end the game.

The senior has been one of the most prolific pitchers in the country so far this season, and Saturday’s showcase brings her to 38 strikeouts on the young season. She’s allowed just 11 hits by comparison, and she has more complete games (four) than runs allowed (two).

At the plate, the Blue Devils were just as impressive. Gisele Tapia came to the batter’s box with the bases loaded in the first and punched one into the outfield for a two-run single.

One inning later, the California native again came up with three runners on board. This time, however, she sent the ball over the fence for a grand slam, bringing her RBI total to six before the end of the second.

The grand slam feat was matched an inning later by teammate Francesca Frelick. The senior brought home a run with a sacrifice fly in the first, but her single in the second inning was her second hit in 14 at-bats so far this season.

When she dug into the box with the bases loaded in the third inning, she’d only produced three RBIs the entire season. With one mighty swing, she more than doubled that total.

Quite literally, if I tried to walk you through every run the Blue Devils scored on Saturday, we’d be here all night. Tapia had another two-run single in the third inning to bring her RBI total to eight for the evening. Junior Ana Gold followed Frelick with a three-run homer in the third, her team-leading fifth of the season. Sophomore Aminah Vega brought home two runs to bring her season total to 16.

Perhaps the best concise way to sum up the performance is through the third inning when Duke made it around the order two full times and scored 14 runs. When Aleyah Terrell singled Tapia home for the 22nd run of the game, the Spartans hadn’t even recorded their ninth out.

Michigan State isn’t the world’s worst team either, entering the game with a 5-8 record. But for a few hours in Durham, the Blue Devils ran the world.

Duke coasted from there, extending its win streak to 11 after its third win of the weekend. The Duke Invitational continues on Sunday at 1 p.m. against Villanova, whom the Blue Devils beat 8-0 in five innings on Friday.

Sooners are latest school to offer 2025 CB Graceson Littleton

Recruiting profile for 2025 three-star CB Graceson Littleton.

Recruiting Florida is nothing new for Oklahoma. It has been recruiting the Sunshine State regularly for a while. It has been successful in bringing in multiple contributors and starters from the state. In recent years, Florida has treated the Sooners well.

One area of Florida that has been very generous to the Sooners is the Tampa area. Oklahoma landed commits from that area in its last two recruiting classes. Is it potentially looking for a third commit in as many classes? Its latest scholarship offer went to Graceson Littleton. Littleton is a 2025 cornerback prospect at Wharton High School in Tampa.

247Sports has him listed as a three-star on its rankings. He’s not rated on any of the other sites. He has excellent foot speed and is listed at 6 feet.

Graceson Littleton’s Recruiting Profile

HUDL

Ohio State football adds a coach to help Larry Johnson’s defensive line

The Buckeyes add a pass rush specialist from the NFL. #GoBucks

Although Ohio State football defensive line coach Larry Johnson received an extension this month, he is still closer to retirement than he is to staying in Columbus for multiple years.

Head coach Ryan Day knows this and made a move for the future, hiring [autotag]Brandon Jordan[/autotag] away from the Seattle Seahawks. He served as their pass rush specialist this past season. He spent one year with Michigan State in the same role in 2022.

Jordan is originally from Texas but prepped in Merrillville, Indiana. He played collegiately at Illinois, so he has Midwest ties and is viewed as a very good recruiter — although he can’t go on the road in this role.

The hope was Seattle would retain him after Pete Carroll decided to take a management role with the team. Clearly that wasn’t the case: The Seahawks’ loss was the Buckeyes gain.

Contact/Follow @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes and opinion. Follow Michael Chen on X.

Takeaways from Iowa basketball’s big win at Michigan State

Iowa basketball picked up a huge win at Michigan State on Tuesday night. Takeaways from the Hawkeyes’ 78-71 win over the Spartans.

The Iowa Hawkeyes (16-11, 8-8 Big Ten) went into East Lansing, Mich., and shocked the Spartan faithful to the tune of a 78-71 road win at Michigan State. In front of a packed out Breslin Center, Iowa picked up a win that dramatically enhances its potential at-large NCAA Tournament resume.

Behind strong performances from junior forward Payton Sandfort, graduate big Ben Krikke and redshirt senior forward Patrick McCaffery, Iowa was able to navigate the momentum swings at MSU.

“I think a great deal (of confidence), because of the respect we have for the two programs you just mentioned (Wisconsin and Michigan State). Not a lot of teams come in here and win. Not a lot of teams beat those teams either place.

“So, the fact that we were able to fight through an overtime victory against Wisconsin who was ranked. Then, another quad one win for us here on the road. Obviously, on the road it’s always going to be harder, and I think in many ways more indicative of your team’s ability to compete. But, now we got to do it again. We have to go on the road at Illinois. One of the best teams in the country,” Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery said afterwards.

What were several of the key takeaways from the road victory?

How the Big Ten stacks up in Joe Lunardi’s latest ESPN bracketology update after Purdue’s weekend upset

After a big loss this weekend by Purdue, how does the Big Ten look in Joe Lunardi’s latest bracketology update?

We are now less than a month away from Selection Sunday, with March 17 being the day every No. 1 seed or bubble team will know its fate. At this point in the season there is little movement among the top four seed lines, but when conference tournaments start in the next few weeks is where things can get interesting.

ESPN bracketologist Jor Lunardi released his latest bracket Tuesday morning, and the Big Ten was well represented with six teams in the 68-team bracket, which includes the First Four teams.

Lunardi also released his conference breakdowns, which highlight the teams he considered for one of the 68 slots and teams looking from the outside in at the bubble.

Most Big Ten teams only have five games left before the regular season ends on March 10, and then the conference tournament starts in Minneapolis on March 14.

Zach Edey and Purdue led over Illinois is down to 1.5 games after the Boilermakers were upset this past weekend by the Ohio State Buckeyes. The loss also took the No. 1 overall seed away from Purdue. The slim conference lead makes the two schools’ March 5 matchup in Champaign all the more exciting.

In Lunardi’s new bracket, six Big Ten teams are in the fold for the tournament: Purdue, Illinois, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Michigan State, and Nebraska. There has been a little movement since last Tuesday, most notably Michigan State jumping from a nine seed to a seven seed after wins against Penn State and Michigan.

Iowa, Ohio State, and Rutgers are three teams that Lunardi considered for the bracket, but they would need a big showing in Minneapolis to make the field.

Let’s take a look at where Lunardi puts the six Big Ten teams in this edition of his 2024 bracket.

Iowa Hawkeyes at Michigan State: Stream, game notes for Tuesday

Iowa basketball hits the road East Lansing. Here’s how to watch, stream and listen to the Hawkeyes at Michigan State.

The Iowa Hawkeyes return to action tonight as they head to East Lansing to take on Michigan State.

Iowa (15-11, 7-8 Big Ten) enters after a thrilling 88-86 overtime victory over then-No. 21 Wisconsin in Iowa City. Senior guard Tony Perkins hit a layup with 1.3 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Hawkeyes their first victory against a nationally-ranked opponent this season.

Freshman big Owen Freeman led the way with 20 points alongside 12 rebounds and four blocks. Junior forward Payton Sandfort and Perkins both added 18 points, while sophomore guard Josh Dix contributed 17 points.

Michigan State (17-9, 9-6 Big Ten) enters on absolute fire, looking to make a push in the Big Ten. They have won three straight games after dispatching Michigan 73-63 on Saturday night. They have won eight of their last 10 contests, including an 88-80 victory over Illinois on Feb. 10.

As tipoff approaches, here’s where Hawkeye fans can watch, stream and listen. Plus, a look at probable starters and tonight’s game notes.

Michigan State baseball has dreadful opening weekend

MSU opened the 2024 season in rough fashion

Michigan State opened the 2024 season this past weekend, where the Spartans traveled to Charleston, South Carolina for a four game opening weekend.

The Spartans opened the weekend with a four game series against Merrimack, Seton Hall, Lehigh and Ball State. MSU went 1-3 in those four games.

Friday, Michigan State defeated Merrimack, 10-3. On Saturday, the Spartans lost to Seton Hall, 10-4, and Lehigh, 2-0. The weekend was capped on Sunday, with the Spartans losing 4-1 to Ball State.

Michigan State will be back in action next weekend, in Florida, for a trip to play Indiana State and Marshall.

Penn State basketball drops home game to Michigan State (photos)

Penn State was unable to come from behind against Michigan State at home on Wednesday evening.

Things did not go according to plan for Penn State men’s basketball on Wednesday evening. In a season where Penn State has been far more successful at home, the Nittany Lions dug a big hole in the first half against Michigan State and was unable to pull off a comeback in an 80-72 loss in the Bryce Jordan Center.

Michigan State’s Malik Hall scored a career-high 29 points and Penn State had a rough night shooting the ball. Each time Penn State seemed to have a run in them in the second half, Michigan State had an answer to pull away. [autotag]Ace Baldwin Jr.[/autotag] and [autotag]Zach Hicks[/autotag] each scored 15 points for the Nittany Lions and [autotag]Nick Kern Jr.[/autotag] added 14 points.

Here are some of the best photos from the game.

The Blue Devils’ five most impressive wins so far in the 2023-24 season

March Madness resumes are built around a team’s best wins, so here’s a look at the biggest lines on Duke’s 2023-24 tournament resume so far.

With March Madness a month away, the Duke basketball team has to be keeping one eye on the bracket projections and how to strengthen their resume in the eyes of the selection committees.

The Blue Devils’ status as a tournament team is unquestioned thus far as the team sits 19-5 and 10-3 in conference play as of this week, but their exact status remains to be seen.

ESPN’s bracket projections have Duke as a No. 3 seed, but other sites like USA TODAY Sports and CBS Sports have the Blue Devils as a No. 4 seed.

The best way to make your case to the committee is with statement wins over great teams, and Duke has plenty of chances to make such statements with a road rematch with Wake Forest and home games against Virginia and North Carolina left on the schedule.

However, before those can happen, here’s a look at the most impressive feathers in Duke’s resume thus far.

How the Big Ten stacks up in Joe Lunardi’s latest ESPN bracketology update

Where do these six Big Ten teams land in Joe Lunardi’s latest ESPN Bracketology?

We are almost a month away from Selection Sunday, so the bracketology is becoming more focused, especially for those top seeds and teams on the bubble.

ESPN bracketologist Jor Lunardi released his latest bracket Tuesday morning, and the Big Ten was well represented with six teams in the 68-team bracket, which includes the First Four teams.

Most Big Ten teams only have six or seven games left before the regular season ends on March 10, and then the conference tournament starts in Minneapolis.

Zach Edey and the Purdue Boilermakers hold a 2.5-game lead over the Illinois Fighting Illini and look headed to the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament.

In Lunardi’s new bracket, six Big Ten teams are in the fold for the tournament: Purdue, Illinois, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Michigan State, and Nebraska.

Unless anything significant happens during the Big Ten Tournament in March, those sex teams would be the only possibilities to represent the conference in the NCAA Tournament.

Let’s take a look at where Lunardi puts the six Big Ten teams in this edition of his 2024 bracket.