History will be made when the Michigan State women’s basketball team hosts rival Michigan in the first of two meetings this season.
The noon Sunday, Feb. 1 matchup will mark the first meeting ever between the programs at Breslin Center in which both are ranked in the top 25 of both national polls. Michigan State enters ranked No. 13 in both the USA Today coaches and Associated Press rankings. Michigan is ranked No. 9 in both polls.
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”I think it’s a big testament to where basketball is in our state,” MSU coach Robyn Fralick said. “There’s been a lot of work done in the programs to make this a premier matchup.”
Sunday’s matchup is just the second between the in-state rivals with both being ranked. The only other time each was ranked in the top 25 when they played came on Jan. 25, 2025, in Ann Arbor. MSU was No. 21 in the AP and No. 22 in the coaches poll, while Michigan was No. 24 in the AP rankings entering a game the Spartans wound up winning 88-58.
MSU (19-2, 8-2) and Michigan (18-3, 9-1) enter Sunday’s matchup enjoying some of their best success in program history.
Michigan, which picked up a road win over Indiana on Thursday, Jan. 29, has been ranked in the top 10 of the national polls for 10 consecutive streaks — the longest stretch in program history. The Wolverines were previously ranked in the top 10 for six straight weeks during the 2021-22 season.
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MSU is off to its best start in program history and owns its best Big Ten record since also starting 8-2 in 1996-97. Its No. 13 ranking in both polls is its highest of the season and the best ranking for the program since the 2010-11 season.
“The trajectory of the sport and our rivalry has moved together,” Fralick said. “I think the sport has really grown and then our programs are both super and really competitive. It’s always a big game and I think it has become an even bigger game with both teams being so competitive nationally.”
The success has both programs in line to host the opening rounds of the NCAA women’s tournament. The top 16 overall seeds in women’s basketball host the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament. In bracket projections released Friday, Jan. 30, Michigan is projected as a No. 2 seed, while MSU is viewed as a No. 3 seed by ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme.
Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on X @brian_calloway and Bluesky @briancalloway.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Michigan State women’s basketball hosting Michigan in historic matchup
