March 27, 2000 8:04 PM AP

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) Maine coach Joanne Palombo-McCallie is the new women's basketball coach at Michigan State.

She succeeds Karen Langeland, who resigned after 24 years to become an assistant athletic director at the school.

Palombo-McCallie, 34, who coached the Black Bears for eight seasons, will sign a five-year contract sometime during the week, athletic director Clarence Underwood said Monday.

The Spartans, who finished the season with a record of 19-12 overall and 8-8 in the Big Ten, return five seniors next season, including Becky Cummings, who was second on the team in scoring and rebounding.

Palombo-McCallie guided the Black Bears to a 167-73 record and six NCAA tournament appearances. Her teams won 20 games for seven straight seasons, including a 20-11 mark this past season.

During her tenure, attendance for games at the University of Maine reached an all-time high, averaging 3,310 fans per game last year. Michigan State attracted an average of 1,506 fans for 14 games this past season.

A native of Brunswick, Maine, Palombo-McCallie was an assistant at Auburn from 1988-92. She played at Northwestern from 1984-87.

Married to an economics professor at Maine, Palombo-McCallie is expecting the couple's second child next month.

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