Michigan State basketball pulls out huge 80-78 win over Illinois to stay atop B1G

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EAST LANSING – Michigan State basketball passed its first major test of the season.

That makes 11 straight wins, a perfect start to Big Ten play, and a significant showing of strength and resolve to come back in the second half.

The 12th-ranked Spartans got nine critical second-half points from Frankie Fidler, and Tre Holloman hit two free throws with 5.4 seconds to play to ice their 80-78 victory over No. 20 Illinois on Sunday afternoon at Breslin Center.

Holloman had 17 points, and both Fidler and Coen Carr scored 11 as MSU (16-2, 7-0 Big Ten) extended its longest streak since winning 13 straight in the 2018-19 season.

“We just want to keep winning, keep it rolling, and we just take it one game at a time,” said senior Jaden Akins, who scored a critical driving layup with 1:13 to play. “We knew this was a big one for us, because they’re one of the top teams in the conference, and we’re happy to get the win.”

MSU coach Tom Izzo got a ton of all-around contributions, including nine points and six assists from Jeremy Fears Jr. and eight points and six rebounds from Jaxon Kohler. All 10 Spartans who played scored at least four points and grabbed at least two rebounds.

“I’d say, all in all, that was our best 40 minutes of the year, even though we had some lows,” Izzo said, adding he felt his team righted things after a wobbly first 6-7 minutes. “I thought we stuck to the game plan.”

Michigan State’s Tre Holloman, right, scores as Illinois’ Kasparas Jakucionis defends during the first half on Sunday, Jan. 19, 2025, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.

Will Riley scored 16 of his 19 points in the first for Illinois (13-5, 5-3), but he went 1-for-5 in the second half. Kylan Boswell had 13 points and nine rebounds, but he committed a critical turnover with 5.9 seconds to play when his no-look pass to Tomislav Ivišić zipped out of bounds before Holloman’s free throws. Ivišić also scored 13 with four rebounds and five assists, while Morez Johnson Jr. added 11 points and six…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/michigan-state-basketball-pulls-huge-192547318.html

Author : Detroit Free Press

Publish date : 2025-01-19 19:25:00

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