Indianapolis - In a game as close as MSU's loss to No. 10 Wisconsin on Saturday in the Big Ten Tournament, there had to be a difference-maker. Both teams were tough on defense, both teams were well-coached and both teams desperately wanted the win.

But only Wisconsin had Devin Harris, a fearless guard whose clutch shots keyed the Badgers' 68-66 win against MSU, eliminating the Spartans from the Big Ten Tournament. MSU now has lost twice to the Badgers in two weeks. On March 2, Wisconsin beat MSU, 68-64, in overtime, denying the Spartans a share of the regular-season Big Ten Championship.

Figuring out which loss was more devastating is as futile as wondering how Harris gathered the guts to take the shots he did to beat the Spartans on Saturday.

In the last two minutes of the game, Harris buried two 3-pointers - the second with a defender practically painted on him - to propel the Badgers to victory.

"We did a hell of a job 90 percent of the game," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said of defending Harris. "He just made some big plays. That's what great players do. He still had to make incredible shots."

Harris scored eight of his 21 points in the last three minutes of the game.

Even more frustrating for the Spartans was the fact they had multiple opportunities of their own to sink clutch shots. But they came up empty each time.

Junior guard Kelvin Torbert missed a jumper with less than 10 seconds remaining and MSU down one point. Sophomore guard Maurice Ager then missed a jumper from behind the free-throw line as time expired. Ager's shot would've sent the game into overtime, had it gone in.

Senior center Jason Andreas said the ability to perform in the clutch is something you either have or you don't.

"I think that we have it," he said. "I don't think we have guys that are displaying it right now."

Saturday wasn't the first time Harris tortured the Spartans late in a game. On March 2, Harris took over, scoring most of his 18 points at the end of regulation and overtime.

"He's not scared to take the big shot," junior swingman Alan Anderson said of Harris. "When he takes them, he takes them with a lot of confidence."

Not that the Spartans were scared to take big shots at the end of Saturday's game; both Torbert and Ager had decent looks at the basket at the end of the game. And compared to Harris' two 3-pointers, they were wide open.

"He made some shots I'm not even sure I'd take, but he's done it all year," Izzo said of Harris.

In MSU's two epic battles against the Badgers in the past two weeks, Harris has been the difference. Not simply because he recently was named Big Ten Player of the Year, but because he embodies something MSU has yet to establish: A clear-cut go-to guy.

Sophomore center Paul Davis seems reliable, but Saturday's loss proved why it's hard to make a center the go-to guy.

A guard, such as Harris, can get the ball on the perimeter and work for his own shot, while a center usually has to be fed the ball in the post.

Davis was the first option on the possession that ended with Torbert's missed jumper, but his teammates couldn't get him the ball. The play broke down, and Torbert was left to improvise.

But MSU has shown the ability to hit big shots this season. Players to hit clutch shots this season include:

• Ager: Not only did he miss a chance to tie Saturday's game, but a chance to hit his second game-tying shot at the end of regulation. On January 28 at Minnesota, Ager nailed a 25-foot 3-pointer which capped an amazing MSU comeback and sent the game into overtime. MSU eventually won, 79-78.

• Junior guard Chris Hill: His biggest shot of the season was probably a step-back 3-pointer over Michigan forward Courtney Sims with 39 seconds left to seal the Spartans' thrilling 72-69 win against the Wolverines in Ann Arbor on Feb. 24.

Hill's status as a big-game player took a hit, however, when he missed two free throws with 22 seconds remaining in MSU's overtime loss to Wisconsin, which cost the Spartans a share of the regular-season Big Ten Championship.

As MSU heads into postseason play, with both losses to Wisconsin branded on its memory, the need for a late-game playmaker is evident.

"For the second game in a row (against Wisconsin), we put ourselves in good position," Hill said. "For whatever reason, we couldn't make plays in the end."