Columbus, Ohio - Senior forward Adam Ballinger is certainly picking a convenient time to heat up. After drudging through a season laden with shooting slumps and abandoned expectations, he has come alive for MSU the past two contests.
Columbus, Ohio - Tired of riding the NCAA Tournament bubble, the Spartans knew a road win at Ohio State on Saturday would nearly solidify their postseason hopes. So they took care of business. They defeated the Buckeyes 72-58 at Value City Arena and now look ahead to the Big Ten Tournament - and beyond. "I do believe we deserve to be in the NCAA Tournament right now," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said, following the regular season-ending victory.
Columbus, Ohio - The Buckeyes turned into just another victim for the Spartans on Saturday afternoon. MSU dominated Ohio State for most of the game, and despite some defensive lapses, picked up the 72-58 victory at Value City Arena.
He had saved his best game for last, was mobbed by his teammates for the second time this season and kissed the green and white "S" at midcourt for good measure. On a senior night that saw four MSU seniors bid the regular-season hardwood at Breslin Center goodbye, senior forward Adam Ballinger shrugged off the criticism of a lackluster season and led the Spartans to a masterful 82-54 win over Iowa on Wednesday. Ballinger, who set career highs in points (22) and field goals (9, including 4-for-5 from 3-point range), set the tone for MSU's (17-11 overall, 8-6 Big Ten) game-winning 16-0 run to open the game. Ballinger and the Spartans never looked back. "The guys did a good job of getting me going," Ballinger said after the game, "Things just flowed.
On the third day of the third month in the third year of this century, No. 3 on the MSU men's basketball team announced this season, his third playing, would be his last. Junior forward Adam Wolfe announced Monday he is "99 percent" sure he will forego his final season of eligibility and leave the team following the completion of this season. Though Wolfe made the announcement abruptly, the decision is not entirely shocking.
Another must-win situation turned into a Spartan victory. The Spartans recovered from a sloppy first half and a lousy start to the second half to defeat the Purdue 69-61 Saturday afternoon at Breslin Center. "It was a strange game - game where there wasn't a lot of flow to it," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said.
Tomorrow is the first day of March, which means the madness of college basketball is almost upon us. During a three-week span (perfect for hoops junkies), reputations are built, hearts are broken and legends are made. This is by far the greatest sporting event of them all.
The Spartans are inching closer and closer to the NCAA Tournament. But the road leading to the first round still has sharp turns.
The Spartans needed to play with desperation Wednesday night. And they did just that. Despite leading by double-digits for most of the game, the Spartans (15-11 overall, 7-6 Big Ten) softened in the latter half of the contest.
It was a traffic jam of a game.Stops and starts of plays, officials' whistles and the timekeeper's horn were the most distinguishable features of MSU's 71-61 win over Minnesota on Wednesday night in front of a capacity Breslin Center crowd.Officials whistled 55 personal fouls against the Spartans (15-11 overall, 7-6 Big Ten) and Golden Gophers (16-8, 8-5), 27 and 28 each respectively.
The Spartans were in a must-win situation Wednesday night and they didn't let the opportunity slide by.MSU (15-11 overall, 7-6 Big Ten) kept its NCAA Tournament hopes alive by defeating Minnesota 71-61 in front of a boisterous Breslin Center crowd.Sophomore forward/guard Alan Anderson led the Spartans with 18 points, while sophomore guard Kelvin Torbert added 17.
He's the floor general, the basketball version of a quarterback, and the leader - the point guard.
MSU is walking into a win-lose situation heading into tonight's matchup with Minnesota. Win and keep hopes of an NCAA Tournament berth alive; lose and consider its dance card lost in the mail.A loss at the Breslin Center tonight for the Spartans (14-11 overall, 6-6 Big Ten) could be catastrophic and running the table in the Big Ten Tournament might be the Spartans only hope for reaching the NCAA Tournament.The Golden Gophers, on the other hand, are looking to steal a conference game on the road to keep their own tourney hopes afloat.Minnesota (16-7, 8-4) strung several lopsided runs together en route to a 77-69 win in January when the teams met at Williams Arena in Minneapolis.
The Spartans' bubble is close to bursting. After losing their 11th game of the season to No.
Down just one point with 17 seconds left to play in Sunday's game against No. 15 Syracuse, MSU called a time-out to set up an open look at the game's winning basket. It wouldn't come. The Spartans (14-11 overall, 6-6 Big Ten) dropped their second home game of the season against a nonconference opponent Sunday afternoon, narrowly losing to the Orangemen (19-4) in frantic fashion, 76-75. MSU had three short-range chances - albeit obstructed ones - from sophomore guard Kelvin Torbert, senior forward Adam Ballinger and sophomore forward/guard Alan Anderson to nail the game-winning shot in the game's final seconds.
Sophomore guard Chris Hill delivered a dynamite performance Sunday afternoon, but the rest of his teammates dropped the bomb. The Spartans couldn't take advantage of Hill's spectacular 34-point game, falling in a 76-75 thriller. Hill set a Big Ten record with 10 3-pointers en route to his career-high 34 points.
When the Spartans are struggling, one medicine always seems to provide the cure - Breslin Center. It's no secret MSU has struggled on the road this year (1-6 in the Big Ten and 3-9 overall). But playing in front of the 14,759 home fans, including the boisterous Izzone has been the answer to the road woes. Aside from one home blemish - an 81-76 defeat to Toledo on Dec.
Champaign, Ill. - Head coach Tom Izzo can only wish Illinois freshman guard Dee Brown signed with MSU. Izzo recruited Brown last year as a backup point guard for former Spartan Marcus Taylor.
Champaign, Ill. - The Spartans were out of their league Tuesday night, suffering a 70-40 Big Ten shellacking at the hands of Illinois at Assembly Hall. The Spartans' 40-point effort was the lowest ever under head coach Tom Izzo, and the worst loss since the coach's rookie year, when the team lost by 36 to Iowa in 1996.
Champaign, Ill. - The stage was set for a Hollywood comeback story.But judging from the sour scowl on sophomore forward Alan Anderson's face following Tuesday's 70-40 loss to No.