Impact Sports Articles – Page 3

Furious Comeback Falls Short in Overtime

Since 2011, Purdue was 0-7 against Michigan State. With a roster loaded with huge (literally) talent, they were poised for some revenge.

The Boilermakers stormed out of the gates and knocked the Spartans down right away. Senior guard Rapheal Davisexploded for 16 points in the first nine minutes of the game, including 4-4 from three. Before Tom Izzo could blink, his Spartans were down 15. The first seven minutes went by without a single whistle.

Bryn Forbes and Eron Harris struggled mightily in hostile territory, combining for five points on 2-11 shooting. Purdue’s bigs manhandled Matt Costello and Deyonta Davis early. It seemed like anyone who stepped in the paint picked up a foul. *Deep breath* Costello, Davis, Kenny Goins, Gavin Schilling, AJ Hammons, Isaac Haas and Caleb Swanigan all picked up two fouls each before the half was over.

Someone must have placed a lid over the Spartan basket because they could not get anything going on offense. Purdue played stifling defense, cutting off passing lanes and forcing shot clock violations. On the other side of the ball, the Boilermakers destroyed their normal shooting rate, going 62.5 percent from the field and 75 percent from three. That would explain the 46-30 advantage after one frame.

The second half was the polar opposite of the first. Purdue suddenly went ice cold, going 4-21 in the first 10 minutes. The Spartans, meanwhile, 9-17.

Michigan State made a roaring comeback in the second half on one possession. Valentine buried a corner three to cut the lead to nine when a foul off the ball on Purdue was called. With a fresh shot clock, Valentine pulled up on the wing and knocked down another three. One possession, six points. Instant game-changer. 50-44 Purdue, four minutes into the second half.

Matt McQuaid sliced and diced his way among the trees for a tough basket, and all of the sudden MSU was within one, 56-55. Just over a minute later, the game was tied. An incredible comeback in an even tougher environment.

Both teams traded body blows for the next few minutes. To say the game was physical is an understatement. There were no easy layups with Hammons patrolling the paint. He finished with eight blocks, more than every Spartan combined.

MSU held a slim lead for the latter stages of the second half. Their largest lead of the entire game was only four. Swanigan tied the game at 72 with a jump hook over the outstretched arm of Davis. Hammons continued his block party on the next possession with a swat on Davis.

With a chance to put the dagger in his former team, Swanigan pulled up for an NBA-range three-pointer with less than 10 seconds left and badly missed everything. Valentine missed a contested jumper at the last second and the game was headed to overtime.

Davis fouled out two minutes into overtime after scoring eight points and nabbing four rebounds. Schilling followed right behind him the next possession. That left just Costello and Goins as MSU’s only big men left in the game to deal with Purdue’s giants.

Purdue gained a four-point edge with 90 seconds remaining when Goins was left wide open for an easy layup. A missed shot by the Boilermakers on the next possession gave MSU the ball with 21.3 seconds left, down 81-79.

Valentine came out of the timeout and drove to the basket for a layup in traffic, tying the game. Purdue called timeout with 6.7 seconds left, drawing up one last play. Valentine was called for a foul fighting over a screen, giving Purdue two free throw attempts. Rapheal Davis only made one, but a mad scramble for the ball ran the clock out. Purdue finally defeated MSU 82-81.

Davis finished with six of Purdue’s eight three-pointers to go along with a team-high 24 points. Hammons dominated the boards with 13 rebounds and eight blocks.

For MSU, Goins had one of the best games of his young career with nine points and nine rebounds. Costello pitched in 11 and five boards. But the star of the night, unsurprisingly, was Valentine. Once again, the senior was a hair away from a triple-double: 27 points, 10 assists, eight rebounds.

Next up for MSU is a home matchup with Indiana on Valentine’s Day. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. and can be seen on CBS.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/furious-comeback-falls-short-in-overtime/

Backyard Brawl Turns Into Backyard Blowout

Saturday’s reprise of the “backyard brawl” certainly didn’t disappoint…if you’re a Spartan fan.

“To say I’m ecstatic about the performance would be underserving what we did,” said Coach Izzo after the game.

Bryn Forbes was named the new mayor of Ann Arbor after Saturday’s 89-73 MSU wallop. The senior elevated above human status with his electrifying stroke from outside. Forbes opened up 5-5 from distance and single-handedly sucked the air out of the Crisler Center in the first half.

On the other side of the ball, Michigan knew they had to hit the three ball if they wanted to stay competitive. That didn’t exactly happen. The Wolverines opened the game shooting a brutal 1-7 from three, resulting in a 26-11 MSU run. Forbes capped off the hot streak with another long gun to push the lead to 29-11 with 8:04 to play in the first.

The once-raucous Michigan crowd finally got something to cheer about when the Wolverines awoke from their shooting slumber to put together an 11-4 run. The lead was cut to 11 with 4:41 to play in the first half, and shimmers of hope began to creep back into Crisler Arena.

State eventually pushed the lead back to 16 at halftime. For U of M, this was coming off the heels of a shellacking at the hands of the Hoosiers a few days ago. Not good.

Michigan State had a clear size advantage in the post, but the Spartans rarely went inside. When the jumpers are falling, layups just seem so inefficient. Playing with a lead in the second half, MSU started to look inside more. Denzel Valentine was able to penetrate for open shots and the bigs muscled their way in the post.

Meanwhile for Michigan, three-point specialist Duncan Robinson wasn’t so special. He finished 0-3 from deep and hardly made any impact on the offense.

“I told our players we have to guard (Duncan) Robinson like we guard Forbes,” said Izzo. “I thought we did a pretty good job on Robinson.”

The Wolverines were especially weak inside when Mark Donnal was forced to sit on the bench with three fouls just five minutes into the second frame. However, Michigan led the points in the paint margin for most of the game, largely due to MSU settling for outside shots.

Unfortunately for Michigan, the worst was yet to come. The threes kept falling for the Spartans, and the Wolverines kept bricking. The lead widened to 69-42 midway through the second half after a thunderous transition dunk by Matt Costello. That was all she wrote.

MSU amazingly finished with a 65 percent mark from the field, their best since Boston College when they shot 62.7 percent. That’s now four of MSU’s last five games shooting above 50 percent from beyond the arc. Even Michigan coach John Belein said he’s “never seen anything like this before” in his life.

Valentine quietly put together another outstanding performance. The senior was an eyelash away from another triple-double, putting up 21 points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Not bad.

“I didn’t want to leave him in there,” said Coach Izzo, “but the guy was close to a triple-double which would have been an incredible feat for him here. But the victory was every bit as good.”

It was Forbes and his unworldly shooting who cast a large shadow over the game with his 29-point outburst. His eight three-pointers were just as many as the entire U of M side made. Also not bad.

The bigs for MSU were supposed to dominate the game and control the scoring. Instead it was the outside shooting that was key. Costello was a mark of consistency throughout the game, going for 14 points and nabbing eight boards. Just what State needed down low.

“I think he’s kind of an unsung hero that we don’t appreciate as much,” said Izzo, “but I’m starting to appreciate him more and more.”

Michigan is falling on extremely hard times, now losing two home games in a row by double digits and trailing at halftime by 21 and 16 points, respectively.

“I’ve been in Michigan’s shoes,” said Coach Izzo, “I told John (Belein) that after. There’s no rhyme or reason why one day you play good one day you play bad. It seems to be an epidemic this year.”

Up next for the Spartans is a marquee matchup with the Purdue Boilermakers in West Lafayette on Tuesday. Purdue is a polar opposite of Michigan, with tons of bigs and not much perimeter play. Costello and Deyonta Davis will face their toughest frontcourt test yet. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/backyard-brawl-turns-into-backyard-blowout/

MSU Rolls Woefull Wildcats

There are good shooting nights, there are bad shooting nights and there are shooting nights like the one Northwestern had.

The Wildcats fell behind quickly and stayed behind due to their inability to find the basket. And by inability I mean 20 percent shooting inability. Sparty pounced and rolled NU 76-45. Michigan State hasn’t lost at Northwestern since 2012, with an average win margin of 23 points. Not too shabby.

MSU ripped off an 8-0 run to double up NU 20-10 early in the first half, and that was just the beginning. Senior forward Denzel Valentine looked more at home than the Wildcats, knocking down his first four three pointers.

Meanwhile, Northwestern’s first half numbers were atrocious, a measly 22 percent from the field and 21 percent from three. Not exactly the best strategy when you’re looking to upset the No. 12 team in the nation.

After a rare three-pointer by Aaron Falzon, the Wildcats opened up the second half missing 13 consecutive shots (insert overused basketball analogy about poor shooting here).

Matt McQuaid was in the throes of a nasty freshman slump before Thursday. In his last five games, McQuaid shot 20 percent from the field and 1-7 from long range. He finally busted out of the rut with a career-high 17 points. WithTum Tum Nairn missing yet another game, McQuaid was the only active point guard on the team, and he finally answered the call.

The Spartans lit it up from three despite a quiet night from Bryn Forbes, who only scored nine points. MSU connected on a season-high 16 long bombs, surpassing the previous high of 11. Valentine led the team with 19 points and five those three-pointers. Deyonta Davis turned in a solid performance as well, with a near double-double at eight points and 11 rebounds.

Tre Demps, arguably the Wildcats’ best weapon, was held in check all night. He turned in his worst game of the season with only four points on 2-14 shooting. This loss for Northwestern was the latest in a string of setbacks in their quest for their first ever NCAA Tournament bid.

MSU nearly became one of the only teams to win by 20+ points without making a single free throw. But Matt Van Dyk had to ruin the historic opportunity with a minute and a half remaining.

Next up for MSU is a date with cellar-dweller Rutgers on Sunday afternoon. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:15 p.m. at the Breslin Center. That three-game losing streak seems like a distant memory now.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/msu-rolls-woeful-wildcats/

MSU Drops Third Straight, “Blood in the Water”

“There’s blood in the water, and the sharks are coming.”

Those were the grim words of Tom Izzo after the game. For the third time in a row, and second in East Lansing, Nebraska beat Michigan State. Blood in the water might be putting it lightly.

With the nightmare week seemingly in the rearview mirror, MSU (16-4, 3-4) looked to bounce back with a home game against the Cornhuskers (12-8, 4-3).

Nebraska star Shavon Shields hit a nifty floater over Javon Bess to put the Huskers up 68-62 with under three minutes left. MSU had a tough time defending the 6-7 senior, who went off for 28 points on 12-20 shooting. Shields took a nasty spill in the first half and almost didn’t return to the game. Luckily for Coach Miles and company, he gutted it out and gave a career performance.

“I just told him at halftime, ‘If you don’t feel like you can go, you’re not letting us down,’” said Nebraska head coach Tim Miles. “But boy, did he go.”

The Spartans were rapidly approaching the danger zone, but Husker Tai Webster missed a pair at the charity stripe that would have extended the lead to eight. Instead, Bess was fouled grabbing the rebound and knocked down both free throws. A four-point swing electrified the crowd going down the stretch.

With Nebraska in the double bonus and MSU in the bonus, a free throw contest was clearly in the cards. Deyonta Davis stepped to the line with 1:34 left and split his freebies, bringing MSU within three. Webster redeemed himself on the following possession, knocking down two at the line.

Eron Harris banged in a cold-blooded three with a hand in his face to cut the score to 70-68 with 45 seconds left. Shields responded with a turnaround jumper to put Nebraska up four and seemingly break the back of MSU. But they weren’t done yet.

With time running out, Denzel Valentine hit a desperation bank-shot three between two defenders to make the score 72-71 and inject some hope into the Spartans with five seconds left. After a timeout, they quickly fouled Webster and sent him to the line for a one-and-one. His shot rimmed out and the Spartans went on the break one last time.

Valentine weaved through the defense and hoisted up a jumper that was just off. Nebraska pulled off yet another upset in East Lansing, 72-71.

“Some of the turnovers and some of the defensive mistakes and small mistakes we made, we just didn’t play very smart tonight,” said senior Bryn Forbes. “We gave some effort but didn’t play smart at all.”

Coach Miles had a tough time explaining his success against Tom Izzo.

“Luck. Just lucky,” said Miles. “I learn so much about winning basketball when I scout his teams. Maybe we’re just fired up to play him.”

One glaring reason for MSU’s loss was the offensive absence of Forbes. He suffered through one of his worst shooting nights, going 1-8 from the field.

“He had good shot shots,” said Izzo. “I give Bryn those shots every day of the week. Nobody feels worse about it than him. There were shots that he makes, those were the best shots he’s had. I don’t think it’s his confidence in his shooting.”

In his last three games, Forbes is averaging 5.7 points per game and shooting merely 22.7%. Through the shooting struggles and losses, he says the team’s confidence isn’t lost.

“I don’t think we’re throwing the season away at all”, said Forbes. “We’re gonna come out next game and try and get a win and try and win the rest out.”

Another key contributor to the lackluster performance was Tum Tum Nairn’s injury. Even though he may not put up impressive offensive numbers, he is the engine that makes MSU’s offense hum.

“Tum Tum brings a lot of energy, he’s a really good defender, he pushes the ball and he ran our offense very well,” said freshman Matt McQuaid, who scored two points on just 1-6 shooting.

Valentine scored 11 of the team’s first 14 points, en route to a 24 point performance. He also added six assists and six rebounds. Eron Harris dealt with foul trouble most of the first half but shot the ball superbly at a 5-6 clip. Matt Costello went down with an ankle injury halfway through the second and returned in the final seconds. He narrowly missed a double-double with eight points and 10 rebounds. Coach Izzo said he “rolled his ankle.”

Free throws once again became the Achilles heel for the Spartans. They were just 12-21 from the stripe, while Nebraska was 10-14.

“We need to shoot better from the line and that’s a huge thing if we want to win games,” said Valentine. “We kind of messed up on that, and we can’t do that if we want to win big games.”

The schedule doesn’t get any easier. Up next for MSU is a date with No. 5/7 ranked Maryland on Saturday. Not exactly the matchup you want in the middle of a three-game losing streak.

“We need to come out and be ready to play,” said Valentine. “Maryland is a great team and has good players. We just can’t make late game mistakes. We’ve been playing well enough the last few games, we just haven’t played smart enough.”

ESPN’s College Gameday will be in East Lansing to cover the contest. The show goes live at 11 a.m., and doors open to the public at 9 a.m. Izzone members are allowed to enter 30 minutes early. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/msu-drops-third-straight-blood-in-the-water/

Time to Hit the Panic Button? Not So Fast

On January 10, Michigan State was 16-1. They had just finished dismantling the Nittany Lions in Happy Valley. The loss to Iowa, their first of the season, seemed to be just an abnormality, a symptom of playing without arguably the best player in the country. The next day, the Spartans moved up in the rankings to No. 4 in both polls, even receiving a first place vote. Safe to say the ship was righted, and MSU was back on track. Then the nightmare week began.

First came a revenge game with the Hawkeyes. With a now-healthy Denzel Valentine and the home crowd behind them, it seemed like a win was certain, maybe even a rout. There’s no way a Tom Izzo team could lose to the same school twice in two weeks, right?

20 minutes later, MSU walked into the locker room at halftime down 22 on their home floor. The biggest and only halftime deficit the Spartans faced at home this year was three points against Louisville. The most MSU has been behind at the break at the Breslin Center in the last two years was seven points against Nebraska in 2014. Needless to say, the Spartans were in trouble.

One main area of concern for Izzo: toughness, or lack thereof.

“It’s kind of funny, a lot of people have laughed at me over the years because I want to be a football team on hardwood,” said Izzo after the Iowa loss. “You saw one, it just wasn’t us.”

This loss was most concerning for Spartan fans because rarely has a Tom Izzo team been out-toughed, especially at home. Iowa looked a lot like the MSU teams of years past, getting to every loose ball, playing tough defense and making threes. But still, it was just one loss, right?

“We’re 16-2 not 2-16,” said Izzo after the game. “We’ve beaten some good people. Basketball is about matchups, and we just didn’t matchup very good with this team.”

Next up for the Spartans was a date with the Wisconsin Badgers, the first time is what seems like forever without Bo Ryan at the other bench. This has been a definite down year for Wisconsin, which lost to Western Illinois on opening night and dropped four of its first five conference games. Seemed like a good opportunity for a bounce back win for MSU.

However, the Kohl Center has never been kind to Tom Izzo teams. The Spartans hadn’t won in Madison since January 2013, but Wisconsin isn’t good this year, right? Well, things got off to a rocky start when the team announced sophomore guard Tum Tum Nairn would be sidelined with plantar fasciitis, an injury he had been fighting through since last season.

Forty minutes later, a Valentine three-pointer rimmed out, a Matt Costello put back was too late, and suddenly the Spartans lost two games in a row.

That’s a lot of doom and gloom. But there is a silver lining, believe it or not.

Remember that team last year that made it to the Final Four as a No. 7 seed? Let’s take a look at how they stacked up against this year’s squad by this point in the season.

As of January 18:

	2014-15	2015-2016
W/L:	12-6	16-3
Rank:	N/R	10/11
Scoring:	73.8	78.9
Allowed:	61.8	62.7
Win Streak:	4	13
L.g. Loss	16	17
Top 25 W/L:	0-4	2-1
Record Since:	15-6
Finish:	Final Four

This is a team built for March, not January. Valentine is finally settling back into the rotation and playing like the Player of the Year candidate he is.

Freshmen Deyonta Davis and Matt McQuaid are developing quicker than expected and are making solid contributions. Both are main parts of the rotation and have cracked the starting lineup.

Senior forward Costello is having the best season of his MSU career, averaging 9.6 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. Frontcourt mate Gavin Schilling is coming along nicely after being sidelined with an injury of his own, shooting 61 percent from the field in eight games.

Bryn Forbes is proving to be one of the best shooters in the nation and even improved on his impressive shooting numbers from a year ago. His three-point percentage is at a career-high and his scoring is up by five, all while his minutes are at a career-low.

Top to bottom, this 2015-16 team has much more talent than last year’s, and look where they ended up.

While it may be tempting to push that panic button and look for another team’s bandwagon to jump onto, I urge you to stop. Just take a breath, look at the stats, watch a game and don’t abandon ship.

March can’t come soon enough.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/16608-2/

Road-Weary Spartans Drub Illini

The road-weary Spartans (15-1, 2-1 Big Ten) finally returned to the friendly confines of the Breslin Center Thursday night to face Illinois (8-8, 0-3).

“We’ve been on the road for so long, I think everyone was ready to be home to play in front of our home crowd,” said senior guard Bryn Forbes.

MSU spent nearly a month and four games away from home, going 3-1 in the stretch. Tom Izzo’s squad was certainly beat up after dropping an ugly game to Iowa then winning an uglier game at Minnesota, both without star Denzel Valentine.

To make matters worse, pesky Illinois was next on the schedule. In the previous nine meetings, MSU was just 4-5, including two home losses. The Spartans did catch a rare lucky break when it was announced that Illinois star Kendrick Nunn would miss the game for the birth of his son. That left the Illini without 18.5 points and 5.5 rebounds.

The scoring was sparked largely by Eron Harris early on, who scored seven points in the first five minutes to give MSU a 16-7 edge.

“Eron Harris had his best half of basketball the first half without doing a lot offensively,” said Tom Izzo after the game. “Defensively he was much better than he’s been.”

Illinois guard and second leading scorer Malcolm Hill was taken out of the game after just three minutes due to foul trouble. Harris, who has struggled defensively this season, was matched up with Hill and locked him down for the most part.

“Just the fact that he [Izzo] put me on their best player today tells me something about my abilities and I already know my abilities,” said Harris. “Makes me feel good that he has that trust in me.”

MSU blew the game open with an 16-2 run late in the first half to go up 39-18, capped off by the Kirk Cousins “YOU LIKE THAT?!” They took a 47-22 lead into the break, thanks in large part to 61 percent shooting. Hill was held in check, only converting one basket in five attempts.

“Remember Illinois is missing a good player, and of course so are we,” said Izzo. “We jumped on them early and that was the difference in the game.”

The second half was much like the first for MSU. They hit five of their first six shots and extended their lead to 30, never looking back. State ruled the paint with an iron fist, outscoring the Illini 50-20 down low and outrebounding them by 19. The game mercifully ended at 79-54.

Forbes led all scorers with 17 points on 7-13 shooting. He has assumed a more aggressive scoring role with his backcourt mate Valentine sidelined with a knee injury.

“Defenses are playing me a little different, so that makes it more difficult,” said Forbes. “But I’ve had a lot of his help, him telling me ‘try this, try this, this will get you open,’ and it’s been working. I think it made me a little bit better, made me do a little bit more and lead a little bit more. I’m ready for him to be back though.”

The Spartan scoring was incredibly balanced, with nine players scoring four points or more. Matt Costello continued his career-best streak, putting up nine points and nabbing 14 boards. He is now averaging 13.3 points and 11.8 rebounds in his last four games.

One of the keys to the victory was the transition game. MSU outscored Illinois 17-4 on the fast break.

“We got our running game going and were getting out in transition and moved the ball real well,” said freshman Matt McQuaid. “The wings were running and it opened up a lot of stuff. Offensively we moved the ball real well and got great ball movement and it paid off.”

A trip to Happy Valley is up next, as the Spartans will take on Penn State Sunday afternoon. The Nittany Lions are no cellar dweller; they nearly knocked off Maryland on the road earlier in the season. Tip-off is scheduled for noon and can be seen on the Big Ten Network.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/road-weary-spartans-drub-illini/

Spartans Outlast Grizzlies in Motown Showdown

The best kept secret in the state of Michigan is Oakland’s Kay Felder. The guard is leading the nation in assists and is second in points per game. He won’t be much of a secret for long. He made his presence felt early, going off for 21 points in the first half.

The moment Denzel Valentine went under the knife, the Spartans were put on upset alert. The Grizzlies are no slouch, having thumped Washington on the road by 14 just days before. Oh, and Felder put up 38 in that one. Gulp.

MSU struggled in just about every part of the game early on. They picked up five fouls in the first three minutes of the game and quickly found themselves behind. Valentine’s absence was felt in a big way. The offense looked disjointed and confused. Oakland pounced on the hesitation and scored 17 points off 10 turnovers.

“We absolutely sucked in every facet of the game,” said Matt Costello.

Oakland caught fire midway through the first, extending their lead to 34-19 with just over seven minutes left. The pro-MSU crowd finally woke up when the Spartans went on a 9-0 run, forcing Coach Kampe to call timeout. But that’s as close as State would get in the first half. The Grizzlies led 50-37 at the break.

“It was a war out there,” said Kampe. “I thought we were as physical as they were.”

The second half was a much different story. Oakland stumbled out of the gate shooting 1-8 in the opening minutes. The Spartans meanwhile hit 71 percent of their shots and cut the deficit to six within five minutes.

Foul trouble plagued both teams in the second half. Matt Costello and Deyonta Davis picked up their fourth fouls midway through the second half, leaving Kenny Goins and a recovering Gavin Schilling to man the paint. Oakland couldn’t capitalize and let the lead slowly slip away.

Bryn Forbes played out of his mind in the absence of his Sexton teammate. He buried a three with nine minutes left to give MSU all the momentum and their first lead since the opening minutes of the game. The pace of the game turned frantic after that, with both teams trading blows, and technical fouls. Both teams shot a combined 100 free throws in the game.

The Spartan lead was trimmed to two with just under a minute remaining when Harris drew a foul driving to the basket. He buried both to extend the lead back to four. The very next possession. Felder hit an acrobatic three in the corner to breathe life back into his squad with 17.1 seconds to go.

After nearly turning the ball over going over half court, Costello went to the line and rattled home one of two to make it a two-point game. Felder drew a foul driving to the hoop with 4.9 to go and a chance to tie the game. And tie the game he did, sending the contest to overtime.

“I always give Oakland credit because they always seem to play us so tough, but this year he’s got a very, very good team,” said Izzo. “I’m gonna be mad at them and him if they don’t get to the tournament because this is a tournament team there’s no question in my mind.”

Overtime was tightly contested as expected. The referees dominated the game with touchy fouls left and right. Goins fouled out on a highly-questionable call with 2:27 left, and the ensuing free throws gave Oakland a one-point lead.

Davis had the post game running to perfection in the overtime period. His layup gave the Spartans back the lead with 49.1 seconds left. Felder fouled out on the ensuing possession after drawing a controversial charge call. Forbes continued his white-hot shooting by drilling a three from the corner to make it a 96-91 game. Free throws decided the rest of the game, and the Spartans survived 99-93.

“A lot of people as I’m walking off are saying hey great, no it’s not great,” said Kampe. “I don’t perceive us as a nice little story anymore.”

Forbes had the best game of his career, putting up 32 points on 7-9 shooting from deep. Harris also turned in the best performance in a Spartan uniform with 27 points of his own. Oakland’s Felder led all scorers with 37 points and nine assists.

“We’re never going to be Michigan or Michigan State but we want to be at that level and we want the respect to be at that level and to do that you have to beat them,” said Kampe. “When you don’t beat them you’re just a nice little story.”

With the holidays right around the corner, Coach Izzo and his Spartans get some needed rest and practice time.

“We need to get back at it and practice like old times and get after somebody a little bit and that’s what we’re gonna do,” said Izzo.

MSU has a week off before heading to Iowa City to play the Hawkeyes next Tuesday. Tip-off is scheduled for 9 p.m. on the Big Ten Network.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/spartans-outlast-grizzlies-at-the-palace/

Emotional, Gritty Win for Spartans

Bodies were flying all over, emotions were running high, the Izzone was getting restless. This was supposed to be an impressive victory to show off to the 2000 National Championship team. Instead it was a dogfight. Florida held a one-point lead with 7:16 to play. With emotions running so high for the Spartans, there was no way they were going to lose.

“We weren’t hitting shots tonight so it was a dogfight, we had to really battle,” said Mark Clark Jr. “I think where they were kind of lacking where we had was strength and that showed on the boards.”

Matt Costello knocked down a jumper to regain the lead, then Bryn Forbes buried a three to take a four-point edge with six minutes left. The Gators’ Devin Robinson sunk a jumper on the very next possession to silence the crowd. That about summed up the game flow.

Two straight stops for MSU led to a Marvin Clark Jr. tip in to extend the advantage to six with 150 seconds remaining. Casey Hill took the ball in transition after a Forbes miss and scored to keep the lead at four just under a minute left. But a pair of free throws by Valentine would ice the game as MSU survived the Gator scare 58-52.

“Florida came in here and they were on a mission to try to play as physical and upbeat as they can and they did a good job of that,” said Denzel Valentine. “It was a low scoring game, we didn’t do our best offensively, but at the end of the day you have to find ways to win and that’s what we did tonight.”

The first half was even more of a defensive battle. Florida turned up the pressure and forced nine first half turnovers for nine points. Both teams struggled to shoot the rock as well, combining to shoot 2-20 from distance.

“I’m not so sure Mo [Peterson] would have missed some of those wide open shots, but it was a knock-down, drag-out, very physical game,” said Coach Izzo.

Florida big man John Egbunu picked up his fourth foul in the first three minutes of the second half, sidelining him for most of the game. He was the biggest player on the court in the few minutes he managed to play. He eventually fouled out without making a single basket.

“We’re a different team when he’s out there,” said Florida head coach Mike White. “It’s just disappointing, and I wish he would have gotten the opportunity to play.”

Valentine led all scorers with 17 points, but struggled to find his rhythm. He shot a paltry 3-11 from 3-point land and 5-17 overall. But his free throws late in the game helped seal the victory for his Spartans.

“‘Zel still had 17 tonight but that’s not the normal ‘Zel that we see every day,” said Clark, who tallied five points and six rebounds. “For our team to be able to bounce back and everybody come in and give something, I think that shows a lot. Especially if we’re not shooting the ball well I think that shows a lot that we’re able to tough it out, play defense and rebound and still get a win.”

Izzo called Forbes his “star of the game,” despite shooting just 1-7 from beyond the arc. He finished with 12 points and added a season-high six rebounds.

“He missed every good shot he took, and I thought he took all good shots. The job he did in tracking down loose balls and playing hard and going and getting rebounds and things we’ve been pushing on him, really, really proud of Bryn.”

The 2000 National Championship team was honored at halftime, with nearly all members in attendance. They defeated Florida 89-76.

“It was definitely a blessing having them in the building and in the locker room before the game,” said Tum Tum Nairn. “There were a lot of emotions flowing through us before the game. I just think it was a special atmosphere tonight.”

The Spartans get a well-deserved break now with a week off before a trip to Northeastern.

“This is gonna be a good break for us now,” said Izzo. “I thought Zel looked really worn and a couple of the other guys did, but it’s been a really good three of four weeks. Now we get a break for finals.”

Harris Breaks Out of Slump in Hawk Smackdown

Ah, it’s good to be on top.

The Spartans played their first game as the top-ranked team in the nation since this time two seasons ago. Maryland-Eastern Shore was the sacrificial lamb for Wednesday’s contest, entering the game with a 1-7 record. They would leave the Breslin Center with a 1-8 record, falling to MSU 78-35.

State went on a 22-4 run midway through the first half, sparked by eight straight points from Denzel Valentine. The Hawks ended the half on a woeful 2-16 shooting streak. The Spartans weren’t much better however. Their half ended with a scoring drought of over five minutes, yet they still controlled a 33-16 edge. Sharing the ball was a priority, as MSU assisted on all but two buckets in the entire game. This comes as no surprise, considering State leads the nation in assists.

UMES was simply outplayed in every major category, and the worst was yet to come. The Spartans constantly extended their lead through the entire second half, thanks in large part to 25 percent shooting from the Hawks in the frame.

One major difference between the two squads was the strength of the bench. MSU’s bench not only outscored the Hawks bench, it outscored their entire team 40-35. Nine Spartans scored at least four points, compared to just four Hawks.

“We got the deepest bench in America right now,” said Marvin Clark Jr. “With the rotation we got right now, it’s gonna wear teams down and that’ll help us in the long run.”

Clark turned in his second solid game in a row, picking up nine points and three boards. The sophomore missed the first two games of the season due to a foot injury and had played more than six minutes in a game only three times.

Another player who found his shot was Eron Harris. He put up 12 points, his best in a Spartan uniform. But what was most encouraging was his perfect shooting from beyond the arc. In his last three games, Harris was only shooting 33 percent from the field and 20 percent from deep.

“I’ve been trying to get up a lot more shots off the court,” said Harris. “I told myself I need to start shooting and hitting my shots. Today I just felt in the rhythm, feeling more confident. I’ve been preparing better before the game. My ability on defense is also getting me ready to play better on offense.”

Player of the Year frontrunner Valentine notched his fourth double-double of the season in the victory, picking up 11 points and 10 rebounds to go along with six dimes. Solid numbers considering he was feeling under the weather.

“He didn’t play with the same vigor that he plays with,” said Izzo. “He still played good, he’s just a little sick. Last night and during the pregame walkthrough today, I could really notice it.

The win over the Hawks moves the Spartans to 10-0, which ties the program’s second-best start ever. Valentine, the undisputed leader of the team, won’t let that No. 1 ranking get to the heads of any players.

“It’s tough because there are a lot of distractions but we need to be a team that can handle distractions when there are other things that are going on,” said Valentine. “I think this will be a lesson for us and will teach us not to let distractions hurt us.”

As usual, Coach Izzo found something to get upset about, even in a 43-point victory. Tonight, it was offensive rebounding.

“We’re just not sending the guys to the boards,” said Izzo. “As I think about our reunion team coming in, hell they had more offensive rebounds getting dressed than our guys get in the game.”

MSU’s next game is on Saturday, when the Florida Gators will come to town. The 2000 National Champion team will be honored during the game. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Originally posted: http://impact89fm.org/sports/harris-breaks-out-of-slump-in-hawk-smackdown/

Sluggish Spartans Survive Cardinal Scare

Don’t you hate it when the airline loses your luggage? Well Michigan State must’ve lost their legs in baggage claim, because they were dead on their feet in the first ten minutes.

Louisville was faster and straight-up dominated the Spartans early on. The Cardinals looked hungry to avenge their Elite Eight loss at the hands of MSU last season.

Before all the fans were in their seats, the Cardinals had an eight point lead. MSU didn’t hit a field goal until almost nine minutes into the game. The Cards capitalized on State’s fatigue and pressed early and often, forcing 11 first half turnovers.

Denzel Valentine and company finally woke up from their coma 12 minutes into the first half. An 8-0 run cut the Louisville lead to four and brought the crowd back in the game. Valentine put an exclamation point on the first half with an acrobatic lay-in as time expired. State never led in the and trailed by three going into the break.

“They brought the toughness and intensity to us early on and we didn’t like that,” said Valentine. “Our motto is players play and tough players win. We didn’t show that in the first half.”

Izzo must have handed out espresso shots to his team at halftime because they finally looked alive and like the No. 3 team in the nation. The two squads traded punches through the first few minutes, neither team able to gain any ground. A Valentine layup tied the game for the first time with 10 mins to go. Kenny Goins hit a turnaround jumper with 6:35 to go to take the first Spartan lead.

Bryn Forbes put the Spartans on his back in the second half, draining three after three from the corner. After the game, Valentine called him the “best shooter in the nation.” Forbes finished 5-9 from range for 20 points.

With just under five minutes to play, Tum Tum Nairn made the play that turned the tide for MSU. He stole the ball from Trey Lewis and pushed it up the floor, getting it to Valentine who served up an alley-oop to Deyonta Davis. Five-point lead for the Spartans and all the momentum heading into the final four minutes.

Lewis hit a trio of free throws to cut the deficit to two with just under a minute to go. The Spartans responded with a pair of their own from Valentine. The Cardinals were forced to foul and MSU came up clutch at the stripe. Valentine nailed two more to keep the lead at four with 5.7 seconds left, essentially icing the game. MSU survived 71-67. They drilled 12-14 free throws in the second half, quite the departure from last season.

“I was like man, Coach is gonna lose it tomorrow on that film if I miss these,” said Valentine. “I’m not trying to hear that. We wouldn’t have been in that position if I made plays early on in the game, so I figured I had to step up and make those plays to make up for it.”

“White knuckler right down to the end,” said Izzo. “I feel fortunate to win. I almost feel like we stole it, and you got to do that in order to have a great season. I wouldn’t say we didn’t deserve to, because we fought back, but I thought they played awfully well for a long period of time in that game.”

“They gave us their best punch and we took it, but we can’t do that,” said Nairn. “We have to be able to hit first. We fought back and responded and got the win.”

Nairn seemed to have left his shot in California after stroking the ball well in the Wooden Legacy. He was 0-5 from the field and 0-2 from distance.

“I shot the ball with confidence and they just didn’t go in,” said Nairn. “I’m gonna keep shooting.”

Valentine led all scorers with 25 points, making it three out of his last four games dropping at least 25. But he struggled with his shot early, just as the rest of the team did. He was perfect from the charity stripe at 8-8.

Goins was the surprise of the game for MSU. The former walk-on, who is recovering from hernia surgery, grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds in 18 minutes to go along with the clutch jumper late in the game.

“I give a lot of credit to Kenny because he’s a hard working guy,” said Nairn. “Comes in and works hard every day and never complains, he’s humble. But I’m so glad he had a breakout rebounding game this particular game against a lot of giants. It was special to see I’m happy for him.”

Michigan State’s next game is on Saturday against Binghamton. Tip-off at the Breslin Center is scheduled for noon.