5 Things for March 26th: MSU Women Bow Out in 2nd Round

1. The Michigan State women's team saw their season end Tuesday night.  They trailed North Carolina by nine at half, and UNC extended their lead all the way out to 26 points at one point in the second half.  The Heels eventually went on to win 62-53.  Freshman Diamond DeShields had 24 points and 12 rebounds for Carolina.

2. For the second time in two weeks, the Red Wings dropped a massive game against fellow playoff-bubble team Columbus.  Detroit didn't look ready to play in the opening minutes.  The Jackets were in buzzing in the Red Wings zone following the opening faceoff, and Todd Bertuzzi put the Wings on the penalty kill with a careless high-sticking call 42 seconds into the game.  Ryan Johansen scored his 28th of the season moments later.

CBJ scored later in the period to go up 2-0, but Gustav Nyquist continued his hot scoring to keep Detroit in the game.  He tallied two more goals, and has the most goals in the NHL since January 20th (20).  However, after a bad Brendan Smith pinch, the Jackets retook the lead (albeit controversially):

It was determined that Smith initiated the contact with Cam Atkinson, and Smith caused the net to come off.  Either way, it gave the Blue Jackets a 3-2 lead.  Columbus tacked on an empty-netter to win 4-2.

If you're looking for some good news, Pavel Datsyuk skated yesterday:

3.  David Mayo at Mlive.com is reporting that the Pistons will receive a D-League affiliate in Grand Rapids starting next season.  If you're looking for some good news, the Cavaliers won last night, so the Pistons are one game closer to keeping their top-eight protected lottery pick.  Detroit and Cleveland meet tonight in a game with massive lottery implications.

4. In some sad news, Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson passed away yesterday.  Wilson was 95.

5. Tom Izzo met with the media and previewed Michigan State's matchup with Virginia.  Joe Rexrode of Freep.com notes that Izzo is very familiar with the style MSU will be facing.