Junior guard Bryn Forbes gets around Michigan guard Andrew Dakich Feb. 17, 2015, during the game against Michigan at Crisler Center in Ann Arbor. The Spartans are leading against the Wolverines at halftime, 38-23. Hannah Levy/The State News
Ann Arbor, Mich. It took MSU five three point tries before their first make. But when senior guard Travis Trice sank a triple with 13:46 seconds left in the first half, the proverbial lid came off for MSU.
The Spartans made 5-of-13 three-pointers and shot 59.3 percent in first half against rival U-M Tuesday night and lead 38-23 at halftime.
Trice leads MSU with 11 points, four assists and is 3-for-4 from behind the arc. Senior forward Branden Dawson has eight points. Sophomore guard Zak Irvin leads U-M with nine points.
MSU found opportunities inside early, scoring six of their first eight points at the rim. But Irvin was just as aggressive getting to the rim, scoring U-M's first six points.
Trice entered the game after the first media timeout, and his pull-up 3-pointer with under 14 minutes on the clock gave MSU a 11-6 advantage.
Perhaps Trice is best suited for the bench role, because a few minutes later he calmly drained a pull-up 3-pointer with a defender draped on him seconds after fumbling the pass.
At the 10:45 mark, Trice drained his third triple of the night — a heat check — to extend MSU's lead to 21-8.
Junior guard Bryn Forbes drained his first triple of the night on the next offensive possession to make it a 13-2 MSU run.
Freshman guard Lourawls "Tum Tum" Nairn even joined in on the fun, knocking down his second 3-pointer of the season in as many games to push the lead to 27-13.
Dawson's head went above the rim on a lob from Trice, and the resulting slam gave Izzone members in the arena another reason to jump.
Trice found Dawson for another lob on the next possession to give the Spartans a 33-14 lead, their biggest of the first half, with 5:52 on the clock.
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