Michigan State holds on late for a 66-60 victory over Ohio State
The Spartans overcame foul trouble and a late Buckeye rally to eke out a 66-60 victory on Sunday.
No. 15 Michigan State hosted Ohio State on Sunday and eked out a victory over the Buckeyes, sending them packing back to Columbus with a 66-60 loss for their baggage. The victory for MSU extends its current win streak to two and improves the Spartans to 12-4 in Big Ten play and 22-5 overall. OSU drops to 9-6 in league action and 17-9 overall. The Spartans now hold an 82-63 margin in the all-time series, winning eight of the last 13 meetings and 15 of the last 21. MSU won last year's lone meeting as well, 69-62, in Columbus.
Carson Cooper led the Spartans with a double-double, scoring 20 and grabbing 11 boards alongside three assists. Jordan Scott added 12 points and Jeremy Fears Jr. scored 11 while dishing eight assists and grabbing two steals. Jaxon Kohler fouled out just shy of a double-double of his own, finishing with nine points and 10 rebounds.
Burce Thornton led all scorers with 32 and Christoph Tilly added 10 for Buckeyes in double figures.
First Half
Both teams were off to a slow start with the score just 4-2 for MSU by the first media timeout. The second bucket for the Spartans came on a Coen Carr dunk highlight. Kohler was also called for two fouls within 15 seconds and headed to the bench with 16:58 left in the half. He would remain there until 5:49 was left on the clock.
Both teams started to find themselves offensively, at least in contrast to the opening stretch, as they battled for baskets and MSU held a narrow 9-8 lead by the next break, this time with 11:24 left in the half. Foul trouble became an issue early for both teams as they would finish with eight for MSU and nine team fouls for OSU in the first half alone.
Returning to the court, the Buckeyes seized the lead soon thereafter with 11:13 left in the half and would hold it for just over 16 minutes of game action when the Spartans would tie it up in the second half. At the buzzer, it was 26-23 Buckeyes.
Just six Spartans had any points by half with Cooper leading with six. Fears had just two, both on free throws.
Second Half
MSU refused to let an OSU lead build out of reach, answering right back with scores of its own. By the first media break, MSU trailed 33-32 after a second-chance jumper from Cooper, marking four-straight points for the big following a pair of free throws prior to that.
Right out of the break, Scott took to the free throw line after blocking Thornton and drawing a shooting foul on a trey immediately prior to the media timeout and hit two of his three shots to give MSU the lead back.
The teams battled back and forth up through the under eight media timeout. Then the Spartans finally broke away for a time, eventually building a brief double-digit lead by the 2:50 mark thanks to a 6-0 run while the Buckeyes went without a field goal for almost six minutes.
A late 6-0 rally by OSU with less than a minute remaining kept fans nervous, but free throws by Scott and Cooper ensured it stayed out of reach as MSU finished with a 66-60 win.
MSU hits the road next with a visit to Purdue on Thursday. The Boilermakers currently sit at No. 7 in the AP Poll set to be updated tomorrow. Tip is set for 8 p.m. Eastern Time with the game being broadcast on NBC Sports Network.
