For the first time in weeks, Michigan State basketball faced some adversity.
The Spartans found themselves battling, trailing by double digits in the first half, and then by as many as 12 in the second half before putting a little run together in the final minutes. A huge 3-pointer by Divine Ugochukwu with 10 seconds left sent the game to overtime, and Michigan State was able to hold on, 88-79.
If it feels like this game took 20 years off your life, you’re not alone.
The Spartans probably didn’t expect to see such a dogfight from this 9-11 Rutgers team, but you can never count out the Scarlet Knights at home under Steve Pikiell.
What’d we learn from this stressful (to say the least) win?
1. This team probably needed a game like this
As an fan, this isn’t exactly what you wanted to see. You probably wanted a stress-free game — a lot like the six leading up to Tuesday’s showdown in Piscataway.
Michigan State fought off some really poor play in the first half, and an inability to get stops in the second half to piece together a run in the final few minutes to send the game to overtime. The Spartans haven’t been tested enough over the past few weeks, so getting one of these down-to-the-wire games, especially against a team that had no business being in the game, is going to be good for the Spartans in the long run.
The toughness showed down the stretch as Michigan State improved to 19-2 right before a huge matchup for Michigan. You know this team is going to be ready.
2. I’m running out of things to say about Jeremy Fears
I know everything has been said about Jeremy Fears, but it would be a massive oversight if I didn’t include the star point guard in these takeaways. He was that good.
Fears was struggling a lot in the first half, but he made sure to let Tom Izzo know in a huddle late that he had this. He turned things up in the second half and overtime, finishing with 29 points and nine assists, including a huge and-one to tie the game at 67-67 late. He also played some really good defense, although he did get bailed out at the end of regular after getting crossed up a bit.
With the game on the line, there’s not a single player in the country that I’d rather have leading my team than Fears. He locked down when he needed to. Also, 16-for-17 from the line is insane.
3. Everything is on the line Friday
When Michigan State was down by 12 in the second half, it felt like Friday was going to be a must-win for the Spartans if they wanted to remain in the Big Ten title hunt. Now that the Spartans survived, it’s officially a battle for first place. OK, so Nebraska is still in first along with Illinois right there, but taking a one-game lead over Michigan would be huge.
The Wolverines were able to hold on against Nebraska, 75-72, on Tuesday night, so both teams are going to be fired up heading into Friday’s game in East Lansing.
State bragging rights, pride, and now first place are all on the line on Friday night.