Sunday's college basketball: MSU women ride fast start past Niagara
East Lansing — Junior Alyza Winston scored a game-high 17 points as Michigan State’s women’s basketball team rolled an opponent for the second straight game, 89-65 over Niagara.
Senior Nia Clouden scored the first six points of the games as Michigan State jumped to an 8-0 lead and eventually led 28-8 at the end of the first quarter and were not challenged after that.
Clouden finished with 12 points, five rebounds and six assists for the 2-0 Spartans, who have outscored their opponents 182-96.
Taiyier Parks, another junior, came off the bench and contributed 11 points and eight rebounds.
Freshman DeeDee Hagemann, last year’s Miss Basketball in Michigan, also came off the bench and scored 11 points and had seven assists.
“I just see DeeDee and she’s a starter whether she’s physically starting or not, and maybe that will change here,” MSU coach Suzy Merchant said. “I just feel like this kid makes everybody better around her. She plays with great energy, she’s smart, she sets people up. She had seven assists and they were some that another kid on our team wouldn’t have gotten those there.”
Michigan State hosts Valparaiso on Tuesday.
More state women
► Central Michigan 65, (at) Valparaiso 61: Hanna Knoll hit a 3-pointer during a key 9-1 run to give Central Michigan the lead and then hit a layup as Central rebounded from its season-opening loss with its first victory of the season.
The Chippewas trailed 51-44 early in the fourth quarter before rallying.
Anika Weekes had 15 points and 13 rebounds for Central.
► (At) Purdue 70, Western Michigan 62: Lauren Ross scored 26, and Reilly Jacobson had 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Broncos (1-1).
► (At) Wayne State 82, Walsh 64: Sam Cherney had 25 points and 17 rebounds, Tori Perez scored 15 and Rebecca Fugate added 13 points for Wayne State (2-0).
Top 25 men
► (At) No. 18 Tennessee 94, East Tennessee State 62: Olivier Nkamhoua scored a career-high 23 points and Kennedy Chandler added 16 for Tennessee.
John Fulkerson, in his first action of the season, had 10 rebounds to go with six points. Justin Powell had 11 points for Tennessee (2-0).
Jordan King scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half for the Buccaneers (0-2). David Sloan added 12 points and Ledarrius Brewer had 11.
► (At) Florida 71, No. 20 Florida State 55: Colin Castleton had 15 points, a career-high 16 rebounds and six blocks — and was one of four Florida players scoring in double figures — as the Gators knocked off Florida State to end a seven-game losing streak in the series.
Florida (2-0) won its first game against its biggest in-state rival since 2013 and took a huge step forward in coach Mike White’s seventh season.
White revamped his roster with four additional transfers, and three of them came up big against the Seminoles (1-1). Brandon McKissic and Myreon Jones scored 12 points apiece and Phlandrous Fleming added nine off the bench.
► (At) No. 23 St. Bonaventure 60, Canisius 60: Kyle Lofton and Jaren Holmes scored 17 points apiece and St. Bonaventure rallied to beat Canisius.
Jalen Adaway added 16 points for St. Bonaventure (2-0) in his season debut after he was suspended for the season opener for an NCAA rule violation.