Minneapolis — By no one’s surprise, Travis Walton once again played a key role in a MSU men’s basketball team victory. Only this time it wasn’t by his stingy, lockdown defense.
Walton brought his offensive repertoire, complete with his jump shot, to the Metrodome on Sunday, as the senior guard scored a career-high 18 points in the Spartans’ 74-69 win over USC. MSU advanced to the Sweet 16 for the eighth time in 12 years.
“We always talk about a scouting report for another team can be hard because you have to prepare for (sophomore guard) Chris Allen, (sophomore guard) Kalin Lucas, (junior forward) Raymar Morgan, (sophomore guard) Durrell Summers; go on and on,” Walton said.
“I practiced my shot, and Kalin put the ball in my hands and I had confidence, and I shot them and they went in.”
Lucas had 10 points and seven assists, while Summers broke out of his recent slump with 11 points for the Spartans, who play Kansas (27-7) in the Midwest Region semifinal at 9:37 p.m. on Friday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Freshman forward Delvon Roe scored 10 points and senior center Goran Suton had seven points and nine rebounds, also holding USC leading scorer Taj Gibson to just three points — all on free throws.
Dwight Lewis (19), DeMar DeRozan (18), Daniel Hackett (13) and Leonard Washington (10) picked up the slack for Gibson, who managed just two shots attempts.
A close game throughout with 16 ties, 14 lead changes and no lead more than six points, the Spartans went on a 10-2 run keyed by 3-pointers from Allen and Summers to go up 52-47 and force USC to call a timeout with 13:29 remaining.
The teams remained deadlocked, but USC — which played just eight players in its first-round win against Boston College on Friday — saw its worst fear realized when Gibson fouled out with 5:38 in the game.
“We lost a playmaker when we lost Taj to foul trouble,” DeRozan said. “We lost a great player who demands respect in the post and can make plays in there for us and when he fouled out we lost that.”
The loss of the 6-foot-9 Gibson didn’t hurt USC at first, as Lewis tied the game at 67 with a layup. But Walton hit a clutch jumper from the baseline and Suton hit two free throws to hold off the Trojans.
“To get this far in the tournament — because contrary to what you think, as you can see by teams who are already out — it’s not just about being good enough,” Izzo said. “You have to be good enough, you have to play good enough and then sometimes you have to be lucky.
“And if I look at a day like this, where Trav hit all those shots, maybe we were lucky today and I don’t mind saying that. I think that’s part of what has to happen.”
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