Morrissette's 31 lead Purdue past Michigan State
Ashley Morrissette wanted to put an end to Purdue’s scoring problems.
So the senior did so, pouring in a career-high-tying 31 points Sunday evening, propelling the Boilermakers to a 76-66 win at Michigan State. Combined with the Mackey Arena win earlier this month, it’s the first regular-season sweep of the Spartans in 13 years.
After the Boilermakers (13-8 overall, 4-3 in the Big Ten) had dropped two in a row, both by failing to score in the final quarter, Morrissette said she was asked to take on more of the scoring load.
“That’s something that Coach asked me to do more in this game, look for my shot,” said Morrissette, who hit 11-of-20 shots, including three three-pointers, plus added seven assists, six rebounds and four steals, to the BTN after the win. “I usually look for my teammates and that’s no big deal. I’m always looking to set them up, but she wanted me to look for my shot more in this game.”
Purdue shot nearly 60-percent from the field (29-of-49), helping it to offset turnovers; it had 22.
The second quarter helped the Boilermakers take control. Then, they scored 27 points on 11-of-15 shooting — with only three turnovers — to turn a two-point deficit into an 11-point, 44-33, halftime lead.
The Boilermakers had 10 fastbreak points in the quarter, part of an evening in which they outscored the Spartans (13-7, 3-4) 22-9 in transition.
“We tell our team all the time, ‘When we can run, it’s going to be a good day,’ especially when we can run and finish,” associate head coach Nadine Morgan said on the post-game radio interview. “That was huge for us and we’re going to get continue to try to do that.”
MSU, playing again without Coach Suzy Merchant, who is on a medical leave, rallied to get within six at the end of the third quarter. But a Morrissette three-pointer early in the fourth extended the lead to nine.
Later, Michigan State cut the margin to five, but Dominique McBryde scored at 6:09 to push it back to seven. About 40 seconds later, a Spartan triple brought to the hosts to within 63-59. And after a Purdue turnover, they had a chance to draw closer, but a Lamina Cooper steal and layup spurred a 10-2 run that helped the Boilermakers end the rally.
“It’s always great when you can win in Breslin,” Morgan said. “It’s a tough place to play and they have a great crowd every time we come. This was big for us.”
McBryde had 10 points and eight rebounds for the Boilermakers, while Dominique Oden scored seven with five assists. But Purdue got solid contributions off the bench from freshman Ae’Rianna Harris (eight points, four rebounds, four blocks) and Cooper (nine points, three rebounds, two steals).
“They were ready to contribute,” Morgan said. “We knew for us to win on the road, we had to have everybody contribute. Everybody that came in did something positive.”
MSU shot 41.5 percent, but committed 19 turnovers. Tori Jankoska had 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, including four three-pointers, while Branndais Agee had 15.
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