Michigan State students left the Breslin Center frustrated and disappointed after the Spartans lost to rival Michigan, a game that many felt slipped away due to a slow first half and missed opportunities in crucial moments.
“Terrible. That was terrible,” said neuroscience major sophomore, Sandy Nakarah. “They’ve never played so badly. We thought we were making a comeback, and then it just dropped off at the end.”
Several students pointed to Michigan’s early intensity and MSU’s inability to recover.
“From the very beginning, Michigan came out hard, and I think we couldn’t recover,” Nakarah said. “Well, we recovered in the middle, and then again we gave up in the clutch moments.”
Despite a strong push in the second half, fans felt the Spartans failed to execute when it mattered most.
“In tighter moments, especially at the end, you can’t be missing free throws, you can’t be giving up those aggressive moments,” said engineering freshman, Tina Barnekova. “There was a point where it was 55–55 with four minutes left. That’s a big chance where you can take the lead.”
Instead, MSU fell behind again late in the game.
“In those last four minutes, that’s the moment where you have to clutch up,” third-year law student, Carson Roberts said. “You have to be good on defense. You have to score everything. You have to get every single free throw.”
Students also emphasized that the first half created too large a deficit to overcome.
“Overall, they need to be a better first-half team,” Roberts said. “You can’t go into the second half down 20 on Michigan.”
Others highlighted Michigan’s defensive strategy and MSU’s shooting struggles.
“They posed a zone to us that we couldn’t really fight,” Roberts said. “The three-point percentage being under 20%, that’s really what bit us.”
Some fans described an emotional rollercoaster throughout the game.
“At halftime, it was really low, being down 16 was tough,” Roberts said. “Then, storming back, right out of half, we had a bunch of energy. We were scoring a whole bunch, and the defense was much improved. The emotions were way back up in the second half.”
“But then a little bit back down near the end,” he added. “We still had faith till the final buzzer.”
Not all students held back their frustration.
“I’m mad. I’m angry,” said business sophomore, Owen Youngblood. “We could have played a lot better. We just couldn’t stop Michigan from scoring. Overall, it was a well-played game. We fought hard, but we didn’t get it.”
Others focused on areas for improvement.
“I think we needed to shoot more,” said finance senior, Lila VanDeKeere. “I think we needed to get in the paint a little bit. They had moments where they were getting in and scoring on us, and I think we needed to do the same.”
Despite the loss, some students remained optimistic about the team’s future.
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“Proud of the second half effort,” Barnekova said. “We really stormed back, but couldn’t finish. We want to finish against one of these top teams, and we’ll get more chances.”
For many, the rivalry itself made the defeat sting more.
“It’s just the worst that it’s Michigan,” said human biology freshman, Charlotte Lin. “You have to beat Michigan. I don’t think this game defines us. We can always bounce back from this.”
