Ann Arbor — MSU hoped Drew Neitzel would be in better health against Michigan on Tuesday night than he was against Indiana on Sunday. Ailing from an upper respiratory infection, the junior guard played all but one minute in the Spartans' 66-58 victory over the Hoosiers, scoring 17 points.
He said he still felt "under the weather" on Sunday. Monday wasn't much better.
And come Tuesday evening, it was evident Neitzel wasn't healthy enough to start the game. He came off the bench and played 29 minutes, but despite MSU's best hopes, there was no transcendent performance that conjured up memories of Michael Jordan, Curt Schilling or Willis Reed.
Neitzel scored 11 points on 3-for-7 shooting, and the Spartans fell to the Wolverines, 67-56, at Crisler Arena.
"Since Saturday night I've been in bed — the whole week," Neitzel said. "I didn't touch a basketball.
"But we can't make excuses. We didn't get the job done. We didn't execute. We were in a position to win there in the second half. We just didn't execute down the stretch."
Neitzel's seven field-goal attempts were his fewest of the season. His previous season low came in the Spartans' season-opener against Brown.
He took on a playmaker's mentality for much of Tuesday, opting to set up his teammates for shots rather than create his own.
The team knew its other scorers would have to pitch in more points than usual, but no Spartan was able to find a steady offensive rhythm. Freshman forward Raymar Morgan looked to shoot often, attempting a season-high 16 field goals. He was successful on six, finishing with 13 points and seven rebounds. Sophomore center Goran Suton equaled Neitzel's 11-point output. No other player scored more than six points.
"That was the emphasis — that everybody, including me, Raymar, Marquise (Gray), MoJo and everybody, had to step up because Drew was sick," Suton said.
Sophomore guard Maurice Joseph replaced Neitzel in the starting lineup. It was the third time this season that he was on the floor for the opening tip.
Joseph, one of the Spartans' best perimeter shooters, had several good looks at the basket, but connected on just 1-of-6 shots from beyond the arc.
Morgan and junior center Drew Naymick also played despite feeling under the weather. Naymick continued a late-season defensive surge, blocking four shots.
Head coach Tom Izzo said Morgan was the least sick of the three.
"I still thought he played pretty good. He missed some shots late — I think a lot of us missed some shots late," Izzo said.
Izzo wanted it to be known that his players' ailments were not the reason for the loss.
"Michigan played very well, and they deserved to win," Izzo said.
