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Izzo names Appling 3rd captain
The buzzer sounded as the ball miraculously floated through the net.
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Women's basketball beats Iowa, prepares for tough stretch
The MSU women’s basketball team kicked off a challenging four-game stretch that features three road games with a 56-46 win on Sunday at Indiana behind sophomore guard Kiana Johnson’s15-point performance.
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Women's basketball defeats Indiana 56-46 on the road
An impressive all-around outing from sophomore guard Kiana Johnson powered MSU to a 56-46 win at Indiana Sunday afternoon. Johnson paced MSU (16-2 overall, 4-1 Big Ten) with 15 points while adding five assists and four rebounds. The Spartans’ win begins a stretch that includes three road trips in the next four games.
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Payne shows skills against OSU
There are a few times each game where Adreian Payne shows off how good he can be. Although sometimes lost in moments of frustration or general fatigue, there are the moments when Payne throws down a dunk or dishes a nifty pass or, more recently, fires a shot from beyond the 3-point line that reminds head coach Tom Izzo of the player he once recruited.
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Appling leads Spartans to win over OSU, 59-56
The Spartans might not know who their leading scorer will be each night. They might not know where they’ll finish in the crowded Big Ten. They might even continue to be the “strangest” 16-3 team Tom Izzo has ever coached. But one thing they know for sure — when the game is on the line, Keith Appling delivers. The junior guard came through in winning time again Saturday night, scoring MSU’s final six points to carry the No.
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In close game, Spartans beat OSU, 59-56
Keith Appling stood at the free throw line, stared straight ahead and exhaled deeply. After being hounded all night by Ohio State’s Aaron Craft, MSU’s junior guard had the chance to get the last laugh. Appling delivered. Calmly sinking both free throws, Appling sealed a big victory for the No.
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Spartans on top of Ohio State at halftime
Sparks of MSU offense bookended the first half, as the Spartans used back-to-back fast break baskets to take a 30-26 lead over No.
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Spartans prepare to face Buckeyes
In the final, regular season game of the 2011-12 season, Ohio State was in the business of breaking hearts.
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Bell leads MSU to victory over visiting Hawkeyes
Klarissa Bell announced her presence at Breslin Center in dramatic fashion Thursday night.
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Women's basketball topples Iowa 65-54
If Klarissa Bell, MSU’s leading scorer, didn’t have the attention of the visiting Hawkeyes when they got off the bus, they definitely did when her half court heave tied Thursday’s game at 25 at the halftime buzzer. Behind Bell’s career-high 25 points, the Spartans downed Iowa 65-54. Tied at 51 apiece with 3:37 left to play, MSU took advantage of a 9-0 run over the next three minutes to pull away — led by Bell and the outside shooting of junior forward Annalise Pickrel. Pickrel was fouled with 59 seconds left and hit one of two free throws to give the Spartans a 13-point lead at which point Iowa stopped fouling and let the time run out.
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MSU, Iowa tied at halftime of women's basketball game
The Hawkeyes jumped out to an early 8-2 lead as MSU struggled shooting from the floor in the early going. The Spartans battled through a shooting slump that dipped to 21.4 percent at one point halfway through the first 20 minutes and kept the margin within five.
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Off-court conflict, on-court win
With hours to prepare the No. 18 MSU basketball team for battle with Penn State, MSU men’s head basketball coach Tom Izzo first had to deal with a battle of a different variety.
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Getting player back could mean more depth for women's basketball
The MSU women’s basketball team hopes to welcome back redshirt freshman forward Akyah Taylor to the rotation for tonight’s home game against Iowa at 6 p.m. Normally, the Spartans (14-2 overall, 2-1 Big Ten ) would not make a big deal out of the return of a player who has averaged 9.3 minutes of play in four game appearances.
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Live chat: MSU men's basketball game at Penn State
The MSU men’s basketball team is set to take on Penn State on the road Wednesday night. Follow along with our live chat here, and leave your questions, comments and analysis for State News men’s basketball reporter Josh Mansour.
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Penn State police respond to minor altercation between MSU men's basketball players
Two MSU basketball players were involved in what police believe to be an altercation this morning at a Penn State campus hotel.
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Flying in the Face of Fear
The scream echoed throughout a Breslin Center stunned into silence. As he writhed on the floor in pain Sunday night, one phrase kept repeating itself in Branden Dawson’s mind. “Please, please don’t let this happen to me again.” For a moment, the sophomore guard thought his worst fear had become a terrifying reality. Dawson defied the odds at the beginning of the season in returning from a torn anterior cruciate ligament, or ACL, in his left knee three months ahead of schedule and with nearly identical, jaw-dropping athleticism and leaping ability. But as he laid underneath Nebraska’s basket, clutching his knee after being fouled on a fast break layup, many wondered if the seven months spent in rehab went for naught. Tom Izzo was “crushed,” Adreian Payne was “nervous,” and Derrick Nix was “just praying that he was alright.”
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Scouting report: Penn State beat writer breaks down keys for Nittany Lions against MSU
We sat down with one of The Daily Collegian’s men’s basketball reporters, John McGonigal, to discuss the three keys for Penn State to pull off an upset.
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Spartans set to take on Penn State on the road
After Wednesday’s game against Penn State (8-8 overall, 0-4 Big Ten), eight of the Spartans’ (14-3, 3-1) next 14 games come against teams currently ranked in the AP Top 25. Of the final 15 games, eight come on the road, including historically tough venues at Wisconsin and Purdue.
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Izzo, players call for more consistent play
As men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo spoke to the media, he described the No. 18 MSU men’s basketball team (14-3 overall, 3-1 Big Ten) as a group of “grinder kids” that battle through close games by playing to the level of their competition, something he isn’t particularly thrilled about.
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Izzo: Social media can be negative, distracting for players
As much as modern society moves towards a new world order of social media, Tom Izzo still isn’t buying it. Izzo doesn’t like Twitter — a sentiment he attempts to pass along to his players. Izzo’s not impressed by the many photo filters of Instagram. Don’t look for the 18-year head coach on Pinterest, either.