In their second last-minute win in a row, the Spartans (13-10 overall, 5-6 Big Ten) were sparked by a late 16-5 run in a 61-58 victory.

After allowing U-M (12-8, 5-5) to go 12-for-29 from beyond the arc earlier this season, the defense stopped any chance of a repeat and as a result, U-M went 3-for-18 Thursday night at Breslin Center.

“Our defense didn’t play great, but we played good enough,” MSU head coach Suzy Merchant said. “I thought we did the one thing we had to do, which was guard the perimeter.”

Merchant gave most of the defensive credit to freshman guard Brittney Thomas for her play against U-M forward Carly Benson late in the second half. Benson, who scored 23 points against the Spartans the first time out, finished with 13 points.

U-M center Krista Phillips started the game off with a layup 30 seconds in to start the basket-trading between the two teams.

Sophomore guard Mandy Piechowski drained two 3-pointers to give the Spartans their first six points and a marginal lead before Phillips hit a 3-pointer to take it back.

From the 11:38 mark to the 7:34 mark in the first half, U-M forced three turnovers while the Spartans couldn’t come up with one.

However, the Spartans’ defense stepped up to help the offense and eliminate any opportunity for U-M to put together any semblance of a run.

After trading the lead nine times in the first half, the two teams entered the locker rooms deadlocked at 32.

Coming out of the break, the Spartans and their opponents again fought for each point and remained tied through the first five minutes.

That’s when U-M took off on a 14-4 run that lasted almost eight minutes.

The excitement wouldn’t last long for U-M, however, as the Spartans found the missing offensive piece to put together their 16-5 run to end the game.

During a timeout at the 4:31 mark, when U-M was up by six points, U-M head coach Kevin Borseth smashed his clipboard into pieces on the court in frustration.

“That made me smile, knowing that we got their coach frustrated,” Piechowski said. “We actually took that as our momentum, seeing that when we are down. It helped push us to the end.”

What U-M has relied on most all season, their 3-point shooting, failed them in the end as guard Janelle Cooper’s shot from 3-point range danced on the rim but didn’t fall in the closing seconds.

Borseth blamed himself for the team’s loss, saying that he overthought himself during the game and down the stretch.

The Spartans have Sunday off. They’ll return to action Feb. 7 in Iowa.