Head coach Tom Izzo yells to his players on the court April 4, 2015, during the semi-final game of the NCAA Tournament in the Final Four round at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. The Spartans were defeated by the Blue Devils, 81-61. Erin Hampton/The State News
At halftime, No. 3 MSU basketball leads the Binghamton Bearcats 41-12 . MSU opened the game on a 9-0 run and the lead would only grown from there.
With a No. 1 ranking on the line, MSU’s leaders made today business as usual, as Valentine finished the first half with 13 points and seven rebounds to lead all scorers.
The Bearcats’ roster includes only one senior and three juniors and their inexperience showed early on, as MSU jumped all over them.
The Bearcats only made four field goals in the first half, as they saw their leading scorer Willie Rodriguez, 17.0 points per game, go 0-for-7 from the floor on his way to a scoreless first half.
The Bearcats finished the first half having shot 12.9 percent from the floor, including just 11.1 percent from behind the 3-point line.
Meanwhile, MSU shot 51.7 percent from the floor with eight different Spartans finding the basket, including an emphatic alley-oop slam from Matt Costello with Lourawls “Tum Tum” Nairn Jr. grabbing the assist.
Eron Harris had a nice showing off the bench in the first half with nine points, two rebounds and two assists, including shooting 4-for-7 from the free throw line.
Free throws remained a problem for MSU as they shot 6-for-9, 66.7 percent, from the line in the first half. MSU also out rebounded the Bearcats 26 to 15 in the first half.
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