The University of Wisconsin women’s basketball team (7-18, 2-11 Big Ten) was unable to complete their season sweep against Michigan State (12-12, 4-9), losing 88-63 Wednesday at the Kohl Center.

Both teams entered Wednesday’s matchup hoping to snap three game losing streaks. The Badgers came into the match after losing to Northwestern (70-67), No. 10 Ohio State (90-67) and Rutgers (73-67).

The Spartans found themselves in a similar situation coming into Madison. They aimed to bounce back after three straight losses to No. 22 Illinois (86-76), Nebraska (71-67) and No. 18 Michigan (77-67).

Michigan State was once again without head coach Suzy Merchant, who missed her fourth game straight due to a medical incident.

Ultimately, Michigan State was able to come away with a decisive victory while Wisconsin dropped their fourth straight conference match and fell to 5-7 at the Kohl Center.

Marisa Moseley’s squad started off hot, going on an 8-0 run in the first quarter. Julie Pospisilova led the way for Wisconsin early in the contest, scoring 11 points in the first 10 minutes of play and converting 4-of-5 from the field in that time span.

Wisconsin finished off a dominant first quarter with a buzzer beater as Sania Copeland was able to convert off a turnover by Michigan State and extend the Badger’s lead to six.

The Badgers found themselves on the positive end of turnovers throughout the first half. Michigan State struggled to control the ball offensively, resulting in nine turnovers which Wisconsin converted for 15 points at half.

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Serah Williams took over for Wisconsin in the second quarter. The forward utilized her masterful post play to secure eight of Wisconsin’s 16 second quarter points. Williams reached the 10-point mark only 16 minutes into the game, extending her double-digit scoring streak to nine consecutive games.

Michigan State, led by associate head coach Dean Lockwood, saw a steady increase in offensive production in the second quarter. After starting the game 4-of-12, Lockwood’s crew outscored the Badgers 22-16 and converted 60% of their shots in the second quarter. Kamaria McDaniel and Taiyier Parks kept the Spartans in reach and combined for 21 of Michigan State’s 36 points in the first half.

Wisconsin finished the half with a second buzzer beater — this time off a long three-pointer by Pospisilova. Despite impressive performances by Pospisilova and Williams, the Badgers found themselves knotted up with Michigan State 36-36 at half.

The third quarter became a back-and-forth battleground, as neither team could gain a decisive lead. While Michigan State found more offensive opportunities, defensive foul troubles allowed the Badgers to convert 9-of-12 from the charity stripe and stay in reach. Despite a lackluster 4-of-14 from the field and 1-of-6 from downtown, the Badgers found themselves still within reach, being only down four heading into the final 10 minutes.

Wisconsin’s second-half struggles continued through the final 10 minutes — the red and white allowed Michigan State to jump out to a 15-0 run in the fourth quarter. The Spartan’s offense ran flawlessly, led by McDaniel who scored 13 points in the fourth quarter. Michigan State outscored Wisconsin 30-9 over the last 10 minutes to put the game away.

Wisconsin was unable to respond to any of the Spartan attacks. Moseley’s group committed nine turnovers in the final 10 minutes, resulting in 14 Spartan points. Michigan State was able to effectively shut down Wisconsin’s offensive opportunities and held Williams to only six points in the second half. The Badger offense that dominated early in the match looked frustrated as the clock ticked down. A four-point deficit quickly ballooned to a 20-point deficit, and Michigan State closed out a dominant 88-63 victory.

Pospisilova led the Badgers with 22 points and six assists. Williams, despite being double-teamed for most of the second half, finished the game with an impressive 18-point performance.

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Michigan State was led by McDaniel, who turned in an incredible 29-point performance, converting 10-of-15 of her total shots off a 6-of-8 mark from downtown. Taiyier Parks had a career-high of 20 points and a team-high of five boards. DeeDee Hagemann also reached double-digits, scoring 13 points in the contest, most of which came in the second half.

Wisconsin will look to snap their four-game losing streak on the road Saturday, Feb. 11 against rival Minnesota.