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     Michigan State's women host Purdue at 7:30pm Thursday.  The Spartans are 11-7, unranked these days and losers of three in a row.  They are near the bottom of the Big Ten standings at 2-5, but they have 11 games left to salvage their season and frankly I don't think there is a team in the league they can't beat-- nor they can lose to either.  Of all MSU's women's problems-- and there are plenty believe me-- poor shooting is at the forefront.  If you do nothing else but shoot well, you can be in all the games and win.  But MSU has shot poorly for much of the season.  I can't imagine MSU losing to Purdue Thursday and if that happens then MSU has big problems beyond where many might think including me.

     Hard to believe MSU was ranked 4th in the Sports Illustrated pre season poll.  But again, in the Big Ten, MSU isn't that far off from most of the rest.  Ohio State may be the league leader but the Buckeyes look mighty vulnerable.  MSU won't win the Big Ten title-- those hopes are gone.  But the NCAA tournament is still a possibility providing that everyone plays one heckuva lot better than what we've seen of late.  Whether it gets done or not remains to be seen.  After Thursday, MSU plays at Minnesota and that's a tough win for anyone.  And MSU sure doesn't want to sit an amazing 2-7 at the league's midway point.  So Purdue is crucial and I don't see Purdue winning here even if MSU does play poorly once again.