PALM SPRINGS, California — Julia Ayrault delivered in crunch time once again.
And her efforts helped the Michigan State women’s basketball team capture the title at the Acrisure Classic on Wednesday evening.
Ayrault recorded her second double-double of the season while helping the Spartans to a 78-70 win over Vanderbilt in the championship game.
Ayrault finished with a season-high 24 points on 8-of-13 shooting and added 11 rebounds while earning tournament MVP honors. She had 12 points and six rebounds in the final quarter.
Grace VanSlooten also had a double-double and surpassed 1,000 career points in the process. She had a season-high 25 points on 11-of-19 shooting and had 10 rebounds for the Spartans (8-0).
MSU outscored Vanderbilt, 33-21, in the final quarter to close out the victory. The Spartans shot 61.1% (11-of-18) in the final 10 minutes.
Khamil Pierre had 19 points to lead Vanderbilt (7-1).
Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on X @brian_calloway.
