Chicago - In one of MSU's best defensive performances of the season, it was a surprising player that helped the Spartans dispose of Purdue.
Freshman forward Erazem Lorbek showed tremendous poise throughout the contest in leading the Spartans (19-11) to 54-42 victory Friday afternoon at the United Center.
The 6-foot-10 Slovenia native grabbed eight rebounds, seven on the defensive end. Most of those came in tussles against much stronger Boilermakers (18-10).
Lorbek was credited with two blocked shots, but the statistics don't show the number of times he forced the Boilermakers, especially Purdue guard Willie Deane, to adjust his shot. A good portion of Deane's 5-for-17 afternoon can be accredited to Lorbek's long, lanky arms and defensive position.
He also picked up a steal on an inbounds play that halted a Purdue momentum swing.
All of these defensive gems were done without being too aggressive in the eyes of the referees. Lorbek picked up his only foul with 1:54 left in the game, but the contest was well out of reach at that point.
"As a team, we just played great defense today," Lorbek said. "I try not to make mistakes and I just wanted to keep getting rebounds."
Sophomore guard Chris Hill said without Lorbek, there would have been a huge hole in MSU's defense. He also said the offense would have been weaker.
"He did a really good job on helping us on the guards and corralling Deane," Hill said. "Offensively, when you can have someone like Erazem hit long J's, it opens up the offense and helps everyone else out."
With 10 points, Lorbek tied for the team lead on 5-for-7 shooting, also picking up a sweet assist on a no-look pass to freshman center Paul Davis early in the game.
This comes after the stat sheet was filled with zeros, except for one turnover and five minutes played.
MSU head coach Tom Izzo said he felt Lorbek was one of those freshman who hit the wall late in their first season.
"Four days ago, I think I hit the wall against Ohio State," Lorbek said. "I was just tired, but I bounced back."
He credits his short turnaround to not being in the starting lineup.
"Especially in the starting lineup, there is a lot of pressure on you," he said. "You see the game from the bench, and you see how the other players are doing and you try and do better."
Lorbek added he also likes being a secret weapon for the Spartans.
"They are pressuring Chris and our guards so much that I just try and set screens and get open," Lorbek said. "Then, I just have to hit my open shots."
After Purdue cut a 24-12 halftime deficit to 32-29 with 12:01 remaining, Lorbek hit the basket that set the pace for the rest of the contest. He stood on the baseline, and drained a 15-foot jumper to give MSU a 34-29 lead. That shot was the start of a 16-4 run, one in which Lorbek would score six points.
"He really came out and gave us a spark in the second half," sophomore forward Kelvin Torbert said. "He kept rebounding, made great passes and gave us a lift. He helped us out a lot in that run." in that run."
