Michigan State women's basketball handed first loss, falls at Fordham

The first road trip of the season for the Michigan State women's basketball team started on a tough note.

Nia Clouden's team-high 22 points weren't enough as the Spartans suffered a 71-68 loss at Fordham on Sunday afternoon at Rose Hill G.

The loss was the first of the season for MSU, which dropped to 4-1.

Alyza Winston added 13 points, DeeDee Hagemann scored 11 points and Tamara Farquhar had four points and 10 rebounds for the Spartans, who entered the week receiving votes just outside the top 25 in both national polls.

MSU led by two at halftime and owned a 42-37 advantage in the middle stages of the third quarter. Fordham (3-1) responded with an 11-0 run that featured three 3-pointers by Kaitlyn Downey to take a lead it would never relinquish.

Fordham had a 54-44 advantage entering the fourth quarter. The closest MSU got came in the final seconds on a 3-pointer by Clouden.

Downey and Anna DeWolfe each had a game-high 24 points to lead Fordham. Sunday's win marked the second of the season for the Rams against a team receiving votes in the national rankings. Fordham also owns a win over Seton Hall.

The Spartans continue their three-game road swing with a Tuesday afternoon matchup against St. Francis Brooklyn.

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