Sophomore guard Branden Dawson goes to shoot the ball during the game against Purdue on Feb. 9, 2013, at Mackey Arena in West Lafayette, Ind. Dawson was the leading scorer for MSU with 20 points, helping the Spartans beat the Boilermakers, 78-65. Natalie Kolb/The State News
West Lafayette, Ind. – By now, Branden Dawson should know what to expect when he visits Purdue’s Mackey Arena.
A season ago, the Gary, Ind. native was met with loud jeers and strong disapproval in his return to his home state and a school he grew up a little more than an hour away from. It was a similar story when the sophomore guard/forward was introduced and each time he touched the ball on Saturday before a crowd of nearly 14,000
But as Dawson has learned to expect negativity from the Purdue faithful, he’s also come to expect the best of himself against the Boilermakers.
In a return to his home state, Dawson led the No. 12 Spartans (20-4 overall, 9-2 Big Ten) with a career-high 20 points in a 78-65 victory against Purdue (12-12, 5-6). The performance surpassed Dawson’s previous career high of 18 points, which he set on Jan. 22 in a 49-47 road win against Wisconsin.
Within the first minute of action, Dawson was quick to silence the opposing fans with a breakaway layup to break the scoreless tie. The Spartans opened the game on a 5-0 run, as freshman guard and fellow Indiana native Gary Harris drained a deep 3-pointer from the corner.
As he’s done all season for the Boilermakers, guard Terone Johnson knocked down two of the first three shots to buoy the early scoring effort. Johnson finished as Purdue’s leading scorer with 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting in a strong showing on his home floor.
After jostling back and forth in the early minutes, back-to-back buckets from senior center Derrick Nix put the Spartans back in the lead for the remainder of the first half.
Even as Dawson led the Spartans to a 31-23 halftime lead, he turned the ball over twice in the first half and nearly lost control of the ball on a breakaway possession that forced him to settle for a layup.
Nerves aside, Dawson returned from halftime much more composed and knocked down two jump shots and a pair of free throws within the first three minutes of a new half.
The Spartans thoroughly controlled the tempo of the game in the second half, extending the lead to a game-high 17 points with a little more than seven minutes to play.
Junior guard Keith Appling was a late catalyst of MSU’s offense, scoring 11 consecutive points for the Spartans late in the second half to maintain the sizeable lead.
Appling and Nix finished the game with 17 points apiece while junior center Adreian Payne also ended up in double figures with 12 points to go along with a team-high five rebounds.
The Spartans return Tuesday to Breslin Center for a showdown with one of the nation’s top players Trey Burke and No. 3 Michigan (9 p.m., ESPN)
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