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Sports | Men's Basketball

MEN'S BASKETBALL

Izzo right to be proud of players

Matt Sheehan
January 26, 2014

When MSU fans were sulking after the 80-75 loss to No. 21 Michigan, Tom Izzo took the podium to address the heartbreaking game. “In the 30 years I’ve been here, I’ve never been more proud of a team,” he said. Wait, what? MSU just dropped a game against their rival to fall behind in the Big Ten title race, and he used the word “proud?” Well, as weird as it seems to say after losing such a marquee game, he’s right on the money. There is no question the Wolverines deserved to win Saturday’s game — they hit all the shots when they needed to in front of the delirious Breslin Center crowd. Yet at the same time, the Spartans took a few steps in the right direction without two of their biggest players. Missing two starters in Adreian Payne and Branden Dawson, Izzo was forced to play some guys who usually only see the court during warmups. Besides Gary Harris’s 27 points and Keith Appling’s double-double, freshman guard Alvin Ellis was the bright point during a loss at the hands of the Wolverines. To be honest, Ellis looked like anything but a first-year player.

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MSU sees contributions from other players with Dawson, Payne on bench

Zach Smith
January 25, 2014

Sophomore guard Gary Harris and senior guard Keith Appling might have carried the No. 3 MSU men’s basketball team as far as they could Saturday night, but it was the unsung heroes that nearly pulled the game out. Players like junior guard Russell Byrd, freshman guard Alvin Ellis and freshman forward Gavin Schilling stepped up and mad big plays to keep the Spartans in it. “I had some guys who stepped up,” head coach Tom Izzo said.

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GameDay visit brings former Wolverine Rose back to East Lansing

Matt Sheehan
January 24, 2014

Before he was an analyst on ESPN’s College GameDay, Jalen Rose spent his college days playing for one of Michigan’s greatest teams. Now, with the show heading to East Lansing, Rose is spending some time back in enemy territory, and MSU fans are making sure he knows it. “People are going to say stuff, or say ‘Hey Jalen, what you doing up here?’ or remind me of games where they won or when they yelled things at me,” Rose said while meeting with the media on Friday.

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Cleaves visit, second-half defense highlight close win for Spartans

Matt Sheehan
January 21, 2014

Walking into Tuesday’s game, No. 3 MSU knew it would have to contain Indiana freshman forward Noah Vonleh, who is nearly averaging a double-double in his young career. Luckily for head coach Tom Izzo, his Spartans did just that, but the containment didn’t come until the second half. Vonleh, who started the game scoring seven of Indiana’s first 11 points, almost went missing in the second half, scoring only four points and attempting no 3-pointers.

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Globe Trotter

Zach Smith
January 20, 2014

It’s minutes before tip-off in Champaign, Ill., and Lisa Schilling is sitting inches from her TV, waiting for her son’s name to be called. Gavin Schilling, a 6-foot-9, 240-pound freshman forward, only sees the court for five minutes against the Fighting Illini, but it doesn’t matter to his mother — she’s as excited as anyone else decked out in green and white. “I feel like I want to be right there in the stadium,” she said.

MEN'S BASKETBALL

Men's basketball wins against Wildcats, 54-40

Zach Smith
January 16, 2014

Gary Harris and Keith Appling combined to score 25 points to lead the No. 4 MSU men’s basketball team to a 54-40 win against Northwestern Wednesday night in Evanston, Ill. Appling contributed four assists, while junior forward Branden Dawson grabbed 10 rebounds, the most of any player. The Spartans came out with their ninth different starting lineup in the last 12 games after being without senior forward Adreian Payne and limited availability from Dawson. Harris showed his strength early, scoring four points, grabbing a rebound and getting one steal in the first minute and a half of the game. Despite being sick with a viral illness, Dawson saw time early getting a block and tip-in after coming off the bench. He also saved a MSU possession and found junior guard Travis Trice wide open to tie the game at 10 early on. The Spartans have the best 3-point field goal percentage in the Big Ten, but missed their first eight shots from behind the arc. They finished the game 2-16 from long range. MSU went into the locker room leading 26-22. The tides turned early in the second half when sophomore guard Denzel Valentine failed to draw a foul on a hard drive to the hoop. The Wildcats ran back down the floor and hit a three-pointer to close the gap to just three points. Sophomore forward Matt Costello scored a nice up and under layup to give the Spartans their biggest lead of the game. On the next trip down the floor, MSU took more than a minute off the clock by grabbing three offensive rebounds, but scored only two points. Northwestern won the rebounding battle in the first half, but MSU came back to win the overall stat line, 39-35. Tre Demps led the Wildcats with 12 points, and JerShon Cobb added eight of his own. Northwestern’s leading scorer, Drew Crawford, was held to just six points. Crawford was averaging?double-digits going into the game. The win was the 214th for head coach Tom Izzo, tying him for fourth in all-time in the ?Big Ten with Lou Henson. The Spartans will return to action Saturday at 8 p.m.

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MSU slugs out win over Northwestern

Zach Smith
January 15, 2014

Gary Harris and Keith Appling combined to score 25 points to lead the No. 4 MSU men’s basketball team to a 54-40 win against Northwestern Wednesday night in Evanston, Ill. Appling also contributed four assists, while junior forward Branden Dawson grabbed 11 rebounds to lead MSU.