Indianapolis – The Spartans had 10 days to prepare for their game against Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals.
It looked like it.
MSU turned the ball over 18 times and found itself in constant foul trouble, but the Spartans managed to beat the Wildcats for the third time this season, 68-55.
"It wasn't the prettiest at times," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said. "We just had some lapses and yet, looking at the rust I was afraid of, I thought Alan (Anderson) had about as good of a first half as he's had all year.
"We got in a little bit of foul trouble and that hurt us a bit, but it was a game we had to win no matter how we won it."
Junior guard Chris Hill led the MSU offense with 17 points, three assists, two steals and no turnovers. Three other Spartans scored in double figures, led by sophomore guard Maurice Ager's 14 points. Freshman guard Shannon Brown and sophomore center Paul Davis added 11 and 10, respectively.
Junior swingman Alan Anderson dropped in eight, but had a game-high six assists.
As a team, the Spartans (18-10 overall) shot an impressive 61.9 percent (26-for-42), 68.4 percent in the first half. MSU also had five players with at least two assists. More impressive than MSU's shooting was its defense. The Spartans frustrated Northwestern throughout the game, holding the Wildcats to 38.6 percent shooting from the field and 34.8 percent behind the 3-point line.
"They're a tough defensive team," Northwestern head coach Bill Carmody said. "We weren't able to compete with that. Our guys have to be able to respond to that kind of play and I didn't think we did."
After Northwestern took a 15-14 lead after a 3-pointer by T.J. Parker, the Spartans shook off their rust and took control of the game.
MSU went on a 17-3 run and the Wildcats never got within 11 the rest of the game.
Wildcat senior guard Jitim Young showed why he was selected to the Big Ten All-First Team, scoring a game-high 24 points. The game was Young's last collegiate contest as the Wildcats (14-15) needed a victory to qualify for the NIT.
Izzo heavily recruited Young and repeatedly has said he is one of his favorite all-time players. When the game ended and Young was hugging teammates right and left, Izzo made sure he got one as well.
"It's a great feeling," Young said. "I really worked hard -- gave myself to college basketball, to Northwestern, and I tried to make myself better. It's just the feeling of it all coming to an end. I have no regrets of anything because I took advantage of becoming the best basketball player I can be."
The Spartans will face No. 10 Wisconsin (22-6) in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals tomorrow at approximately 4:05 p.m. on CBS. The second-seeded Badgers beat third-seeded MSU twice this season, the last game keeping the Spartans from a share of the Big Ten title.
It's a matchup the Spartans are more than anxious for.
"You always want that, because we finally had our chance to win a championship and they took it from us," Anderson said. "This is definitely what we want."
Izzo, who is 0-4 all-time against Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan, said he is just as ready to take on the Badgers as his players.
"I'm sure they're ready to play us and this is what we want," Izzo said. "No. 1, this is getting to be a rivalry, and No. 2, it means we've advanced and they've advanced."
The winner of that contest will take on winner of the Illinois-Michigan game for the Big Ten Tournament Championship on Sunday.
