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Halftime: men's basketball trails 28-27

February 7, 2015
<p>Senior guard Travis Trice attempts a point Feb. 7, 2015, during the game against Illinois at Breslin Center. At halftime, the Spartans were lead by the Fighting Illini, 28-27. Erin Hampton/The State News</p>

Senior guard Travis Trice attempts a point Feb. 7, 2015, during the game against Illinois at Breslin Center. At halftime, the Spartans were lead by the Fighting Illini, 28-27. Erin Hampton/The State News

Photo by Erin Hampton | The State News

At halftime, Illinois leads MSU, 28-27.

Both teams entered the game missing key pieces, with Illinois down redshirt senior guard Rayvonte Rice and MSU down freshman forward Javon Bess.

Junior guard Bryn Forbes was called for a reach-in foul at the 18:19 mark, and after a good week of practice, sophomore guard Alvin Ellis checked in for him. Ellis quickly capitalized on his early playing time, hitting a three from the corner following a beautiful pass from junior guard Denzel Valentine to give the Spartans a 7-0 lead.

MSU had plenty of energy early, as freshman guard Lourawls Nairn and Ellis each dove to the floor for loose balls. Then, at the 14:08 mark, the Spartans forced a shot-clock violation.

Like times past, however, an early MSU run wasn’t sustained. Illinois chipped away at the lead before tying the game at 11 at the 10:36 mark.

After Valentine went up rather casually for a lay-in, his attempt was blocked and on the ensuing Illinois possession, the visitors took a 15-14 lead thanks to freshman forward Leron Black’s fourth straight point. Sophomore guard Malcom Hill continued his team’s run, hitting a three despite a foul from Valentine (his second). The made free throw capped a 17-4 run for Illinois.

After a very quiet start to the game, senior forward Branden Dawson scored his first points at the 5:45 mark on a jumper in the lane.

Two makes from Forbes at the line got the fans at Breslin back into it, and a team floor slap culminated in a Dawson block on the defensive end.

The Spartans looked their best when Nairn was pushing the ball on the break, and with 1:02 left in the half, he did just that, finishing with strength for a lay-up at the other end, cutting the Illini lead to 26-24.

Illinois answered but MSU had a chance for a final score before halftime. Following a timeout, Nairn found Forbes curling around a screen at the top of the arc. Forbes pulled the trigger on the three and it fell, leaving MSU down just one point at the break.

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