The Spartans needed to play with desperation Wednesday night.
And they did just that.
Despite leading by double-digits for most of the game, the Spartans (15-11 overall, 7-6 Big Ten) softened in the latter half of the contest. But, that was just enough for them to hold off Minnesota 71-61 at Breslin Center. The victory kept MSU's home conference record unblemished at 6-0 and kept its NCAA Tournament hopes alive.
"We made it difficult, but it was a good win and a step in the right direction for us," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said. "I thought there were times we played awfully well. We had a lot of different guys step up."
Numerous players took turns in the spotlight because the game was marred by 55 fouls. By the seven-minute mark in each half, both teams were in the double-bonus.
The teams combined for 69 free-throw attempts, and that could have been higher if both squads hadn't clanked a number of front-ends on one-and-ones.
"The game could have been pretty, but it turned out ugly," senior forward Aloysius Anagonye said. "But a lot of good things happened today, and in the end, we got a win."
Four Spartans reached double-digits led by sophomore forward/guard Alan Anderson's 18 points. Sophomore guard Kelvin Torbert added 17, while Anagonye and freshman center Paul Davis chipped in 12 and 10, respectively.
Coming off Sunday's record-breaking performance, sophomore guard Chris Hill was held to eight points and finished 0-of-6 beyond the 3-point line.
"Every one I took felt good," Hill said. "But for some reason, they just weren't going in tonight."
MSU led by as many as 18 points with just under 14 minutes left in the second half, however, Minnesota mounted a comeback.
Trailing 51-33, the Gophers slowly closed the gap before finally getting within four points following a triple by guard Maurice Hargrow with less than a minute left.
But the Spartans clinched the game with six makes from the free-throw line.
Minnesota's scoring duo of Rick Rickert and Michael Bauer was ineffective most of the game. The forwards scored 13 and six points, respectively. Both played most of the second half in foul trouble.
The Golden Gophers (16-8, 8-5) came in leading the Big Ten with 76.9 points per game, but MSU's defense aggravated the Gophers all game. Minnesota finished 19-for-56 from the field (33.9 percent), including 4-of-17 behind the 3-point line.
"I think the credit for how that game went, went to Michigan State's defense," Minnesota head coach Dan Monson said. "They got into us, especially in the post and they were very physical. We just never got into an offensive rhythm and we had to abort everything we were doing."
