Teammates on the bench cheer during the final minutes of the second half as the Spartans lead against Ohio State on Friday at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis for the Big Ten Tournament. The Spartans advance to the next round tomorrow against Wisconsin.
Indianapolis — Through an up-and-down season, there’s one thing the MSU men’s basketball team has been able to do with every chance it’s had.
The Spartans are now a perfect 4-for-4 in revenge games, taking down every opponent that they’ve lost to and had a second chance to play. Ohio State became the Spartans’ latest victim, as MSU defeated Ohio State, 67-60, in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament on Friday afternoon at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Senior guard Drew Neitzel had 14 points in the first half and finished with a season-high 28 for No. 19 MSU (25-7). Freshman center Kosta Koufos paced the Buckeyes (19-13) with 19.
MSU advances to face No. 8 Wisconsin (27-4), a 51-34 winner against Michigan in quarterfinal action, at 1:40 p.m. on Saturday.
After falling to the Buckeyes, 63-54, in Columbus on Sunday, the Spartans avenged the victory, despite being out-shot by the Buckeyes (41.8 to 36.7 percent).
“I’m just proud of this team for winning a game when a team was playing for their lives,” MSU head coach Tom Izzo said of Ohio State and its NCAA Tournament bubble status.
Neitzel hit one of his six 3-point baskets with 1:18 remaining in the second half to put the Spartans up 61-55. Then, co-captain Travis Walton put the icing on the cake with five free throws down the stretch. Despite going nearly the first 25 minutes of the game without a free throw, MSU shot 16-for-22 from the charity stripe.
After scoring six points on Sunday, Neitzel said he felt the best that he has all season.
“We, from last year, knew he was very capable,” Ohio State coach Thad Matta said. “He was probably more aggressive hunting shots than he has been this year. He had that look like ‘I want to take that big shot’ and fortunately for them and unfortunately for us, they were going in.”
Going into the half tied at 30, the Spartans were able to quiet Ohio State senior guard Jamar Butler for the most part — with the exception of a 3-pointer with time winding down in the half. Koufos more than made up for his teammate’s silence, scoring 13 in the first twenty minutes.
In the second half, freshman guard Durrell Summers put together arguably the most important string of his MSU career with around seven minutes remaining in the game, coming in off the bench to hit a 3-point basket and make a streaking lay-up to give the Spartans a 52-45 lead.
“He’s got some energy and he’s got some legs,” Izzo said. “There are just times when it’s hard to get him in there as much but he showed some real promise.”
While the game started with whistles few and far between, the game finished with 36 total fouls, one technical foul and two players fouling out.
Tomorrow, the Spartans have another chance to avenge a regular-season loss when they take on Wisconsin.
“It’s going to be a big game just because of where we’re at — the semifinals trying to get to Sunday and they’re playing great right now and we get another chance at them,” Neitzel said. “It’s not too often in your career that you get a chance to play somebody that’s beat you.”
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