Michigan State basketball: Report card for clutch win over Marquette

Michigan State basketball: Report card for second-round win over Marquette

Mar 19, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Michigan State Spartans forward Malik Hall (25) grabs a rebound over Marquette Golden Eagles forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (12) during the second round of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament at Nationwide Arena. Mandatory Credit: Adam Cairns-The Columbus DispatchBasketball Ncaa Men S Basketball Tournament Round 2 /

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Michigan State Spartans guard Tyson Walker celebrates the 69-60 win against the Marquette Golden Eagles in the second round of the NCAA tournament in Columbus, Ohio, March 19, 2023.Msumarq 031923 Kd6683 /

Tyson Walker: A

Tyson Walker or a hybrid of Cassius Winston and Travis Trice? It was hard to tell the difference as the senior guard was out there making heroic plays all afternoon long against Marquette.

Walker had a slow start to the game as no one was making shots after the Spartans raced out to an early 13-point lead. He was trying to hit some deep shots and he was 0-for-3 from long-range but he got hot when it mattered most. Just like he said earlier this season, “Shoot to get hot. Shoot to stay hot.”

Leading the team in minutes, Walker didn’t even look tired late in the game when a Sweet 16 berth was on the line. Heck, he looked like he had even more energy.

Walker was 8-for-17 from the floor and finished with a game-high 23 points.

The biggest play of the game outside of his circus left-handed layup and a couple of major pull-up jumpers that extended the Spartans’ lead was a swipe and dunk (not a typo) to put the game away for good with an 11-point lead with 40 seconds left.

Tyson had one of his best games of the year when MSU needed it most.

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