It’s hard to top Brittany Rayburn’s January 12th performance at Minnesota when she tied an NCAA record 12 three-pointers. But, Friday in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals she came close.
On a bigger stage, Rayburn scored 29 points connecting on 7-of-10 from downtown, including her first seven, to lead Purdue past Michigan State 73-64.
“I can’t compare it to that (Minnesota) game. That was a mid-season game, this is a completely different thing. Playing in the Big Ten Tournament is huge,” said Rayburn. “Any game you can lose and you’re done. I think the biggest thing was just the will to win.”
The Boilermakers started the game on a 7-0 run before the Spartans countered with a 13-0 run of their own. But, that’s when Rayburn got going. The second team All- Big Ten selection was the catalyst in Purdue ending the first half on a 31-14 spurt (Rayburn scored 16) to give the Boilermakers an eleven point halftime edge.
“It’s a rhythm you get in,” said Rayburn. “Taking charges is the same way. Getting rebounds is the same way. Anything you have to do to get your team to victory is what you are going to do. The biggest thing is just going out and having fun.”
The mid-game break didn’t slow Rayburn down. She connected on her first two triples of the second half and helped Purdue balloon the lead to as many as 20.
But, those were the last field goals she would make. Rayburn missed her final seven shots from the field and Michigan State chipped away to trim the deficit to single digits. But as Rayburn cooled off, Chantel Poston stepped up.
The junior scored ten points and grabbed three rebounds. Six of her points came on traditional three-point plays. The second came with 5:31 to play. After a missed shot, Sam Ostarello grabbed an offensive rebound, one of her team-high eleven, to keep the possession alive and Poston finished it off with the hoop and free-throw.
“I think sometimes when you are struggling on offense, you need those 50-50 balls,” Poston said. “We have to get those hustle points. We have to get those 50-50 balls because it can make a difference in whether you win or lose.”
Courtney Moses added 14-points and three assists for Purdue. She was also a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line, extending her own school record to 46 straight. As a team, the Boilermakers were 15-of-16 from the charity stripe.
Lykendra Johnson scored 23-points and grabbed eleven-rebounds for Michigan State, but after a torrid start, she was plagued with foul trouble, slowing her and her team down.
“I felt like we attacked a little bit better down low when she was out of the game,” said Purdue head coach Sharon Versyp. “She changes the game because she is a shot blocker, but when she was out, we did what we were supposed to do.”
Purdue avenged a late season overtime lost at Michigan State and punched their ticket to Saturday’s semifinal against Penn State. The Nittany Lions are the top seed in the tournament and upended Minnesota 78-74 in their quarterfinal matchup.
Purdue and Penn State met only once in the regular season. The Lady Lions won the February 16th contest in West Lafayette 74-63, but that was a game Versyp thought Purdue did not play to its standard. She expects a more ready team the second time around.
“(Our players) still remember those games. We weren’t at our best and now we have another opportunity,” she said. “We need to be at our best to play them. We’ll see what tomorrow brings.”
Purdue and Penn State will play in the second game Saturday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. Ohio State and Nebraska will meet in the first semifinal at 5 p.m.