At halftime, the men's basketball team leads The Citadel, 32-26. Sophomore forward Gavin Schilling leads the Spartans with nine points on 4-of-4 shooting.
The men's basketball team couldn't convert from downtown.
With senior forward Branden Dawson sitting out because of a fractured wrist, it was obvious that Michigan State was missing something in a 71-64 loss to Texas Southern. Beyond the absence of a veteran starter and a consistent rebounding threat in Dawson, MSU couldn’t find the energy to take care of business against a Southwestern Athletic Conference team that entered the game at 1-8 overall.
For roughly 25 minutes, the men's basketball team had a fully healthy squad for the first time all season.
After knocking off Big Ten foe Michigan on Dec. 9, upset-minded Eastern Michigan came to Breslin with the hopes of defeating another in-state power conference team. MSU needed some time to adjust to the Eastern 2-3 zone but eventually found its groove, pulling away for a 66-46 victory. EMU (8-2) caused early problems for the Spartan offense.
It's been a long time coming for Javon Bess, but the freshman guard will make his debut on Wednesday against Eastern Michigan. Bess, a Yahoo! Sports three-star recruit who has been described as a "diamond in the rough" by head coach Tom Izzo, was a potential starter before undergoing surgery on his right foot in late October.
With the game well in hand early in the second half, the biggest story of the night became whether or not senior forward Branden Dawson would score his 1000th career point at MSU.
Efficient shooting has been the story of the men's basketball team through ten games, and the nation’s top three-point shooting team did what it does best to storm past Oakland. As team, MSU (7-3) shot over 55 percent from the field and just under 59 percent from three-point range, making 10-of-17 threes in an 87-61 victory over the visiting Golden Grizzlies.
Bryn Forbes has been on fire for the men's basketball team over the last couple weeks, but head coach Tom Izzo isn't entirely satisfied with his overall performance on the court. A few days after scoring 18 points on 7-of-7 shooting from the floor Wednesday against Notre Dame, Forbes scored 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting on Saturday against Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
Clutch play by junior guard Denzel Valentine could save the Spartans (5-3 overall) from falling to Notre Dame (7-1 overall) 79-78 in overtime in the ACC/Big Ten challenge Wednesday night. The Fighting Irish were led by senior guard Jerian Grant, who had 27 points and six assists.
Sophomore guard Alvin Ellis III, who sprained his ankle in the opener against Navy, practiced on Monday and will likely see playing time in the ACC/Big Ten challenge on Wednesday, in which No. 19 MSU will take on Notre Dame.
Cold shooting in the second half doomed the men's basketball team in the Orlando Classic championship game. Behind 19 points and nine rebounds from junior forward Perry Ellis, No. 11 Kansas (5-1 overall) defeated the No. 20 Spartans (5-2 overall) 61-56 in Kissimmee, Florida.
Marquette gave the men's basketball team everything they could handle on Friday night, but Marquette ultimately couldn't overcome a career night from Denzel Valentine.
The men's basketball team took care of business on Thanksgiving day, defeating Rider 77-45 to advance to the semifinal round of the Orlando Classic.
After losing a number of talented players from a year ago, it was known that for MSU to have success this season, fresh faces would have to step up. It appears freshman forward Marvin Clark Jr. and sophomore forward Gavin Schilling have the potential to be a couple of those guys.
In his first start at MSU, freshman forward Marvin Clark Jr. took full advantage of his opportunity.
There was some speculation coming into the season on whether junior Matt Costello and sophomore Gavin Schilling could carry the load for MSU's big men. On Friday night, the Spartans were adamant about getting the ball in the paint through both players.
The No. 19 men's basketball team bounced back from a 10-point loss against No. 4 Duke on Tuesday with an 87-52 home victory over Loyola Chicago Friday night. Five Spartans reached double figure, led by senior forward Branden Dawson who had 15 points, seven rebounds and three assists, and freshman forward Marvin Clark Jr.
It’s not common for programs to have the success in both basketball and football that MSU has had, which makes it even less common for the two coaches of those teams to be as close as Tom Izzo and Mark Dantonio have become over the years.
March 27, 1999, will be remembered as one of the most disheartening nights for Spartan basketball. MSU was in the Final Four of the NCAA semifinals for the first time since their national championship in 1979, and lost to the No.