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Iowa-Michigan State Big Ten women’s tournament glance: Time/TV/game info (March 6, 2025)
The winner advances to the league’s quarterfinals, and the loser goes home to wait for Selection Sunday
Mar. 5, 2025 10:24 pm, Updated: Mar. 6, 2025 5:11 pm
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What: No. 11-seed Iowa (21-9) vs. No. 6-seed Michigan State (21-8) in the second round of the Big Ten women’s basketball tournament
When/where: Thursday, 7:55 p.m. (Iowa time, approximate), Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Indianapolis. The game will start 25 minutes after the end of the 5:30 Illinois-Nebraska game.
TV: BTN )Sloane Martin, Christy Winters Scott, Elise Woodward)
Livestream: Fox Sports Live
Radio: Hawkeye Radio Network affiliates
Series: Iowa leads, 43-31
Line: Iowa by 1.5
What to know: The winner of this game will advance to face No. 3-seed (and 13th-ranked) Ohio State Friday at approximately 7:55 p.m. (Iowa time). Both teams are headed to the NCAA tournament.
In the teams’ only meeting this season, Michigan State rallied from a 58-49 deficit early in the fourth quarter at East Lansing to beat Iowa 68-66 last Dec. 15. Hawkeye forward Hannah Stuelke scored 18 points and drew 12 fouls. The Hawkeyes shot just 36.5 percent from the field.
Iowa is coming off an 81-54 win over Wisconsin Wednesday in the opening round of this tournament. The Hawkeyes shot 57.4 percent from the field and made 11 of 20 3-pointers. No starter played more than 23 minutes.
Michigan State is 43-17 in two seasons under coach Robyn Fralick. It finished in a three-way tie for fifth-place in the Big Ten at 11-7 and is ranked 24th. The Spartans lost three of their last five games, with the defeats coming against the league’s top three seeds, USC, UCLA and Ohio State.
“Robyn Fralick has done an awesome job,” Iowa Coach Jan Jensen said Wednesday. “Their defensive presence is really impressive.”
The Spartans are 11th in the nation in steals per game with 12.5.
Junior forward Grace VanSlooten leads MSU in scoring with 15.6 points per game. Senior guard Julie Ayrault, who scored 19 against Iowa, averages 14.5 points and a team-high 7.5 rebounds.
No. 6-seeds are 23-5 in this tournament against 11-seeds.
Iowa is 39-25 all-time in this event. Michigan State is 28-29. They have split their four meetings in the tournament, with the Spartans winning quarterfinal games in 2004 and 2006 and Iowa winning semifinals in 2010 and 2021.
The Hawkeyes have won their last 10 games in this event, dating to 2022.
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