For the first 19:56 of the game, MSU junior guard Maurice Ager looked to be repeating his performance from Sunday's game in which he finished 1-of-8. But for the remaining 20:04, Ager put on a show to lead No. 19 MSU to a 71-64 win over Purdue on Tuesday night at Breslin Center.
Ager, who had only one point in the first half before a lay-in with three seconds left for two, scored 19 points in the second half, including three 3-pointers. He had a team-high 22 points.
"He got the steal, he got the dunk and then he just hit so many threes in a row," sophomore guard Shannon Brown said of Ager. "It sparked us and kept us in the game."
Brown set a career-high with 20 points, shooting 6-for-11 from the field. He also grabbed a career-high nine rebounds. His previous high was seven, set last season against Syracuse.
MSU head coach Tom Izzo doesn't know what the result of the game might have been without Ager and Brown.
"Thank God that Shannon Brown played probably his best game as a Spartan," Izzo said. "Thank God that Maurice Ager had a phenomenal second half."
Izzo said Ager was sick before the game, throwing up several times.
"It's not really a big deal," Ager said. "I just get it out and keep playing."
In stark contrast to Sunday's game at Wisconsin, MSU was able to hit its free throws down the stretch, including six from Brown in the final minute.
MSU (11-3 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) came out running, with senior guard Chris Hill throwing an alley-oop dunk to Brown, who was fouled on the play just two minutes into the game. Brown made the free throw to put the Spartans ahead, 5-0.
The Boilermakers eventually battled back, even taking a five-point lead near the middle of the half, but MSU would see its lead swell to nine at halftime. In the second half, Purdue (4-11, 0-5) was able to get back within one point as late as 10 minutes left, but could never recapture the lead.
"I thought our kids were making progress," Purdue head coach Gene Keady said. "We're getting better."
Purdue forward Carl Landry finished with a career-high 31 points in the loss.
"I think when he starts to play with the same mindset on defense as he does on offense we're going to be a lot better," Keady said of Landry.
It took fewer than five minutes of the game clock to elapse before junior forward Matt Trannon and senior guard Tim Bograkos entered the game. Izzo said Monday that both would see more playing time.
Bograkos only played six minutes, while Trannon played for 14, getting five points and one rebound. Trannon, though, did make his presence known by throwing down an alley-oop from senior forward Alan Anderson with more than six minutes left in the first half.
While other Spartans were lighting up the scoreboard, Hill had an off night, scoring only three points - a career low.
Senior guard Kelvin Torbert and Anderson also both struggled. Anderson fouled out for the second game in a row with six points while Torbert was held scoreless.
MSU is off until Saturday when the Spartans travel to Minneapolis to face Minnesota at 4:30 p.m. at Williams Arena.
Matt Bishop can be reached at bishop20@msu.edu.
