Blue Demons Visit No. 24 Michigan State Sunday

CHICAGO – DePaul women's basketball will face its fourth top-25 opponent of the non-conference schedule on Sunday, Dec. 8 with a matchup against 24th-ranked Michigan State. Tipoff from the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Mich. is set for 1 p.m. CT.

The matchup will be streamed live on B1G+ with Charlie Schmidgall (play-by-play), Jack Stager (analyst) and Oliviah Klinski (sideline) on the call.

Demon Doings
DePaul meets its second Big Ten opponent in as many games after falling to local rival Northwestern 64-56 on Wednesday night in Evanston. Despite a 20-2 run in the latter stages of the game, the Blue Demons couldn't complete the comeback and fell to 3-6 on the season.

Against the Wildcats, Taylor Johnson-Matthews exploded for a career-high 20 points, 16 of which came in the second half during DePaul's comeback bid. The junior transfer shot a season-best 56-percent Wednesday night and ranks second in scoring on DePaul's squad, averaging 12.4 points per game.

Graduate forward Jorie Allen has paced the Blue Demons all season long, with a team-best 18.3 points per game. In her final season of eligibility, Allen has finished in double figures in all nine games. Allen's 54 made free throws this season ranks ninth in Division I while her 62 attempts is 12th.

Sunday's game will close out a rugged stretch in which the Blue Demons have faced four ranked opponents in a seven-game span. DePaul's non-conference schedule is ranked the 20th toughest in the country per the NCAA's NET rankings.

Michigan State Notes
The Spartans are unbeaten for the third time in program history with an 8-0 record. MSU will play its first game in 11 days on Sunday and is coming off a 78-70 victory over Vanderbilt on Nov. 27 in which it claimed the Acrisure Classic title in Palm, Springs. Calif.

Oregon transfer Grace VanSlooten leads three Spartans averaging double figures with 17.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game while shooting 56-percent from the field. Graduate guard Julia Ayrault follows VanSlooten with 16.3 points per contest.

As a team, MSU is averaging 91.8 points per game which ranks fourth in Division I. The Spartans have passed the century mark in three games this season.

Robyn Fralick is in her second season as the head coach of the Spartans and led the program to an NCAA Tournament appearance in her first season at the helm.

Series Stuff
The two sides will meet for the fifth time on Sunday afternoon with the Spartans holding the 4-0 edge in the previous meetings.

A season ago, Michigan State claimed a 102-64 victory over DePaul at Wintrust Arena. Allen had 12 points and seven rebounds in the last meeting.

DePaul's last trip to East Lansing was in March of 2002, an 87-76 loss in the first round of the WNIT.

Up Next
The Blue Demons will return home to begin a five-game homestand on Friday, Dec. 13 when UIC visits Wintrust Arena. Tipoff on Marquee Sports Network is set for 7 p.m. CT.

Ticket Information
Season Tickets for the 2024-25 women's basketball season at Wintrust Arena start at $95. Secure your seats today at www.DePaulBlueDemons.com/tickets and commit to DePaul Women's Basketball!

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Blue Demons Visit No. 24 Michigan State Sunday

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Players Mentioned

Jorie Allen

Taylor Johnson-Matthews

DePaul University Athletics