Al Anagonye, who had foul problems in games earlier this season, doesn’t pound the hardwood with his hands because he’s frustrated with officiating - he does it to invoke a strict Spartan defense.
“That’s just something that’s been a tradition here at MSU,” the sophomore forward said of the gesture. “It’s just a signal for teammates to play hard and realize that they have to get down and dirty.”
In a 72-55 rout of Purdue on Sunday, MSU (18-2 overall, 7-2 Big Ten) responded to those calls, holding the Boilermakers (13-7, 5-4) to 28.3 percent shooting from the field - its best defensive effort against an opponent this season.
“We just tried to keep a hand up on them,” senior guard Charlie Bell said of defending Purdue. “At the end of the game they started making some shots, but all game long we were trying to make it tough for them to get open looks at the basket.”
Trailing 15-14 after a layup by Purdue guard Carson Cunningham, the Spartans went on a 22-0 scoring run that gave them a 36-15 lead late in the first half, which frustrated Purdue head coach Gene Keady.
“Their defense and our poor shot selection in the first half caused problems,” Keady said of the Boilermakers’ 21.9 percent shooting in the half. “Their defense forces you to shoot the ball quickly.”
MSU, which hasn’t allowed an opponent to shoot more than 50 percent from the field this season, held Purdue to 17 points at the half and no foul-shot attempts.
“I was pleased with the overall defense and our break at times,” MSU head coach Tom Izzo said of the team’s effort. “I thought switching from man to zone defense at times was effective.”
Izzo said MSU still needs to improve on the defensive end to win championships and hold its own in a much-anticipated game at Illinois on Tuesday.
The Boilermakers outscored the Spartans 38-34 in the second half.
“I thought we broke down once in awhile on crazy stuff,” Izzo said of the team’s lapses of effort in the second half. “There were times where our guys would stand there ready to guard a guy and he would shoot it right in our face.
“Purdue made a couple of threes that way. They also had a total of about five or six layups against us because our guards didn’t get back on defense.”
Senior forward Andre Hutson, who praised MSU for its tenacity in stifling Purdue, said nothing will come easy against the Illini in a hostile environment.
“It’s going to take one of our best defensive efforts of the year,” Hutson said. “They are definitely one of the top teams in the Big Ten and the country. If we don’t play hard we won’t win.”
