CHICAGO – The old dog showed off its new tricks, using its experience and seasoning to withstand a late comeback from a group of talented young pups. Or young Wildcats, to be more precise. The No. 2-ranked MSU men’s basketball (2-0 overall) team toppled No. 1 Kentucky, 78-74, in the first game of Tuesday’s Champions Classic at Chicago’s United Center.
It did not take long for No. 1 MSU to take the lead against No. 1 Kentucky, and at the end of the first half Tuesday night at the Champions Classic in Chicago, MSU leads 44-32. MSU opened the game on a 10-0 run thanks to a floater by sophomore guard Gary Harris, and a steal and breakaway dunk by senior guard Keith Appling.
As a freshman, Branden Dawson was guarding one of the nation’s premier players on one of the largest stages. The now-junior forward was guarding North Carolina’s Harrison Barnes in his first collegiate game, as well as the first game ever played on an aircraft carrier in front of the President of the United States and a nationally televised audience. On Tuesday, No. 2 MSU will be back on the big stage, this time in Chicago for the Champions Classic against No. 1 Kentucky.
As his team prepares for tipoff in a highly touted contest against No. 1 Kentucky in Chicago, head coach Tom Izzo said Monday he can’t remember a non-Final Four matchup with as much national buzz as tonight’s Champions Classic is receiving.
As the men prepare to take on top-ranked Kentucky, Suzy Merchant and the No. 20 MSU women’s basketball team will face its own challenge Monday night. The Spartans will open their season against No. 7 Notre Dame at 7 p.m. in South Bend, Ind.
Each and every day, Travis Trice is working to prove himself. On a team with four- and five-star talent, such as Gary Harris, Keith Appling, Adreian Payne and Branden Dawson, Trice can sometimes be lost in the shuffle.
After talk of redshirting this season, freshman guard Alvin Ellis III will not redshirt his freshman year. The six-foot-four guard was a late signee to last season’s recruiting class after originally having committed to Minnesota. However, Ellis chose to look at other options after Tubby Smith was fired in March, and eventually signed on with MSU in late April.
This time last year, Branden Dawson and Travis Trice were coming off of a summer where neither were able play and develop. Dawson, a junior forward, was recovering from a torn anterior cruciate ligament he sustained in the final regular season game against Ohio State during his freshman year.
The No. 2 MSU men’s basketball team pushed the pace — and cruised to a win. The Spartans (1-0 overall) won the first home opener at Breslin Center since 2010 by beating McNesse State, 98-56.
The No. 2 MSU men’s basketball team came out of the gates pushing the tempo and shooting a plethora of threes, and lead McNeese State, 52-25, in the first half of the college basketball season. Immediately after the tip, senior guard Keith Appling found sophomore guard Gary Harris for an open 3-pointer – his first of three in the half. The Spartans kept shooting from downtown and finished 8-16 from beyond the 3-point line. MSU also kept the pressure on the Cowboys offensively.
Earlier today, it was announced the annual State Farm Champions Classic will be renewed for three more years. The Champions Classic is an annual basketball doubleheader headlined by powerhouses Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and MSU.
The regular season has yet to start, but recent rule changes by the NCAA for basketball already have been affecting both men’s and women’s teams at MSU and across the country.
Relying on three-point shot is one of the most inconsistent plays in basketball, but in the MSU men’s basketball team’s 83-45 win against Indiana University of Pennsylvania last night, that’s exactly what they did.
?The preseason finale for men’s basketball started the same way how many fans expect the regular season to play out: with a slam dunk. Five seconds after the tip, senior guard Keith Appling lobbed an alley-oop to high-flying junior forward Branden Dawson to send the crowd into an early frenzy. “We execute that everyday in practice,” Dawson said. “It just felt good to get that, and it’s been a while since I’ve been out there with Keith Appling throwing me an alley-oop.”
The preseason finale for men’s basketball started the same way how many fans expect the regular season to play out: with a slam dunk.
With legendary MSU running back Lorenzo White in the house, the Spartan men’s basketball team ran all over the Indiana University of Pennsylvania and lead 47-26 at the half. MSU lived from behind the three-point line as 19 of their 31 attempted field goals were three-pointers. An alley-oop from senior guard Keith Appling to junior forward Brandon Dawson just five seconds into the game got the IZZONE on their feet early. Two three-pointers from sophomore guard Gary Harris and one that senior center Adreian Payne rattled home pushed the Spartan lead to five points with 15 minutes left. Eight of the Spartans first ten shots were from behind the arch. MSU didn’t start to pull away until there was ten minutes left in the half when two more three-balls from Harris and a huge dunk by Dawson gave MSU a 12-point lead. Not to be outdone, Dawson lobbed a pass high into the Breslin Center sky the next time down the floor, that a flying Pyane hammered home with authority to put MSU up 14. Freshman forward Gavin Schilling skied for a put back slam after a missed three by junior guard Travis Trice. IUP had some success getting the ball low, and were led on the score sheet by Uruguay native Marcel Souberbielle with 10 points. Harris led all scorers with 14 points, and went 4-6 from the floor, all three-pointers, while Payne led the way on the boards by snatching 4 rebounds.
On Sunday night, junior forward Becca Mills enjoyed the fruits of her labor. A summer spent on developing a post game was shown in Sunday’s 91-47 win over Grand Valley State, where Mills posted 18 points, five rebounds and two blocks in just 24 minutes.
Grand Valley State was no match for the No. 18 MSU women’s basketball team on Sunday afternoon at Breslin Center, with MSU picking up its second preseason win, 91-47. It was the final tune-up match before MSU faces No.
After one half of play at Breslin Center, the No. 18 women’s basketball team leads Grand Valley State, 43-26. GVSU kept the game within a couple of points for much of the half, but the Spartans started to take control of the game nearing halftime. MSU shot the ball well from behind the arc, going 5-for-10 on 3-pointers. MSU was led by senior forward Annalise Pickrel’s eight points, six rebounds and two assists.
In her debut college game, Tori Jankoska put up 27 points, had 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals, leading the Spartans to a 100-52 victory over Ferris State University. Women’s basketball head coach Suzy Merchant was pleased with Jankoska’s performance.