Michigan State women's basketball 'rolling with the punches' in a season altered by injuries

EAST LANSING — Things were setting up for this to be a strong season for the Michigan State women's basketball team.

Star guard Nia Clouden had high hopes with so many players she had logged significant minutes with the last few seasons slated to surround her on the court.

And Tamara Farquhar, who joined the Spartans as a grad transfer from Purdue, anticipated being another part of a veteran team trying to push its way to one of the top spots in the Big Ten.

But things haven't played out as expected for the Spartans, who started the season receiving votes outside the top 25 in the Associated Press and coaches national polls and looked to build off an NCAA tournament appearance.

The adversity has been constant since the official start of practice for MSU, which has dealt with injuries to key contributors and an in-season departure that has forced it to take on a much different look this season.

The Spartans (10-8, 4-3 Big Ten) have lost four players from the experienced core it had to open practice with senior Tory Ozment (ACL) and juniors Julia Ayrault (foot) and Moira Joiner (concussion) being sidelined with season-ending injuries and junior guard Alyza Winston entering the transfer portal. All four entered the season with significant experience and high expectations.

MSU lost Ozment and Ayrault during preseason practices, had Winston leave the program in December and has had Joiner in and out of the lineup due to concussion protocols before she was shut down for the season last week. Those losses have significantly limited the Spartans' depth — especially in the backcourt.

"I haven't had a season like this in a really long time," MSU coach Suzy Merchant said. "It's hard because where you started and with what we had coming back to like now being decimated and now trying to put it together.

"I just feel for them because I just know it's just hard. I think a lot of them — especially the veterans — just knew where we were and how we started the season with everybody back from that team to really just being decimated. Even just little things like COVID — we had to play an entire game with only two guards. Every time we turn around we're taking a punch. I am proud of the fact that they are just finding a way. They are competing."

The injuries and departures have resulted in some individuals playing out of position at times and forced freshmen Matilda Ekh and DeeDee Hagemann to log heavy minutes and become even more vital for the Spartans. Both have been up to the task in addition to others.

Ekh was named the Big Ten's freshman of the week on Monday for the second time this season.

More: Matilda Ekh continuing to grow game in strong debut season for Michigan State women's basketball

Farquhar, who has been through situations like this in the past while playing at Purdue, said how the Spartans have held their own — sitting sixth in the Big Ten standings entering Thursday's scheduled matchup at Penn State — has been promising.

"I think we've all done a good job at stepping up when we've had that adversity," Farquhar said. "Having individuals that have been out and then have come back in has been a lot of adjusting, I think what has allowed us to do well as a team is that everybody is doing their strengths even better when people are out because they know we are relying on them a little bit more."

More: Nia Clouden shows expanded range while helping Michigan State women's basketball past Minnesota

Clouden is proud of the constant fight displayed by teammates despite the circumstances. MSU has fought its way to wins in its past two games to get above. 500 in the Big Ten. One of those came with Merchant out due to COVID-19 protocols.

"I'm really proud of this group," said Clouden, who has been one of the Big Ten's top scorers and helped keep the Spartans afloat amid the adversity. "We've gone through so much since the year started. We basically started the year thinking we would have almost a completely different team. Things have happened to us and I feel like we've been rolling with the punches and we've been doing what we can. Even within that, we've been finding ways to win games.

"We've struggled other times, but I'm just proud of how we've bounced back after everything that's happened to us. We're still focused on getting ourselves better, getting our team better and continuing to try to compete in the Big Ten."

Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @brian_calloway.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Women's basketball: Michigan State finding its way despite adversity