Michigan State Basketball: Highlights, final score vs. Purdue

Michigan State basketball hosted No. 20 Purdue on Tuesday night and the game was as good as advertised — for a half.

The first half of Tuesday evening’s Michigan State vs. Purdue matchup was about as good as it gets. Both teams were exchanging blows back and forth and they went into halftime with a 39-39 deadlocked score.

Purdue seemed to come out angrier in the second half as Isaac Haas and Caleb Swanigan played dominant basketball in the post. Swanigan showed just how valuable he was and it was a tough sight for Spartan fans as he committed to Michigan State before de-committing and picking Purdue.

Miles Bridges had a big game for the Spartans, but he needed some help in the second half as he was accounting for a majority of the Spartans’ points. He finished with a game-high 33 while no other Spartan finished in double figures, a major reason for the offensive struggles.

Michigan State needs to figure out a way to get more guys involved as Eron Harris, Josh Langford and Nick Ward seemed to be non-factors, especially because of foul trouble.

The Spartans were out-scored by 11 points in the second half as the defense struggled to slow Swanigan and Haas as they just bullied the Spartan bigs for 36 points and 19 rebounds.

Can Michigan State still make the NCAA Tournament? Tom Izzo thinks so.

Three Stars

Miles Bridges had a monster game despite the loss, scoring a career-high 33 points to go along with seven rebounds and four blocks.

The crowd didn’t phase Caleb Swanigan as he finished with 25 points and an incredible 17 rebounds. He looked like the Big Ten Player of the Year.

Vince Edwards had his second straight solid game against Michigan State, scoring 10 points and added five rebounds and four assists.

Highlights

Michigan State will host Michigan on Sunday in a big rivalry game which could go a long way in deciding who makes the NCAA Tournament from the Big Ten.