Recap: Michigan State ousts Minnesota in Big Ten Tournament, will face Purdue
After facing a two-point deficit at halftime, No. 8 seeded Michigan State would outscore No. 9 Minnesota by 12 in the second-half to take a 77-67 win in the second-round of the Big Ten Tournament, moving on to the quarterfinals.
The game was back-and-forth in the first-half, as there were nine lead changes and four ties between the two teams in what seemed like an even match-up, but the Spartans were able to pull away thanks to the performance of guard A.J. Hoggard, who didn't miss a shot or free throw all day with his team-high 17 points and six assists. Tyson Walker didn't shoot well but hit plenty of timely shots in the final minutes to finish with 15, and Malik Hall ended with nine due to playing in foul trouble.
MSU took over in the second-half thanks to timely steals which led to easy fast-break layups for Hoggard and Walker, as four players had two steals a-piece. The Spartans didn't shoot many threes in this game, but hit 5-of-8 compared to Minnesota's 8-for-22 performance from behind the arc. Dawson Garcia led the Golden Gophers with 19 points.
It won't get easier for Michigan State, as their quarterfinal match-up will be against the No. 1 seeded Purdue in a noon game on Friday.
Final: Michigan State 77, Minnesota 67
0:08 - Hawkins makes the three-pointer, but that'll be the last shot for Minnesota as the Spartans move on in the Big Ten Tournament, riding a second-half run to win by 10.
1:00 - Minnesota gets to the free throw line for a 1-and-1 opportunity, but Garcia missed the free throw with allows Hoggard a lane for a layup. Then Walker steals the ball and Hoggard gets an exclamation point layup as the Spartans take a 13-point lead which all but seals the game.
1:50 - It's not over yet, as Christie hits his third three of the half. Walker uses multiple screens to get to the lane and misses the layup, but Kohler is all alone under the basket and makes an easy tip-in shot.
2:28 - Fox makes a layup to bring the deficit back to single digits, but it's short-lived as Walker drives again and hits the layup. MSU takes a quick timeout as Tom Izzo seems unhappy at Hall.
3:08 - Fox went to the line after the timeout and missed both free throws, then Walker creates some space for the mid-range jumper and hits it as MSU takes their first double-digit lead of the night.
Michigan State 67, Minnesota 59 - TV Timeout, 2nd Half
3:37 - Garcia drives and hits an out-of-control floater, then Walker uses the pick-and-roll to get to the rim and make the layup as the Spartans keep the lead at eight points. After a foul called on Booker, a TV timeout is called.
4:37 - Hall commits his fourth foul, then Garcia hits a shot over two Spartan defenders. Then Garcia commits his fourth foul contesting a drive from Walker as the fouls are really starting to pile-up for both teams. Walker makes both free throws.
5:29 - The fouls and free throws are starting to pile on as Hoggard now goes to the line. He makes both of his free throws as the Spartans go back up by eight.
5:54 - Hawkins drives to the rim and is fouled by Kohler, but Hawkins only makes one of his two free-throw attempts.
6:42 - Hall puts Garcia into the spin cycle for the layup, then Garcia answers back quickly with a layup of his own as Minnesota tries to keep up.
7:11 - Right after the timeout, Garcia goes after Kohler and gets the foul to shoot free throws. He splits the attempts as the lead is cut to seven.
Michigan State 59, Minnesota 51 - Minnesota Timeout, 2nd Half
7:24 - Hall makes the layup as the Spartans are on a 15-2 run and might start pulling away from this one if Minnesota can't get back on track. We'll be back after another timeout.
8:01 - Akins gets back-to-back steals on Payne, then flies inside to put-back a miss from Kohler as Michigan State has its biggest lead of the game.
Michigan State 55, Minnesota 51 - Minnesota Timeout, 2nd Half
9:05 - A crazy moment just happened, as Payne tried to dunk the ball, but the ball got stuck and Minnesota's called for basket interference. Then Holloman pulls up for three and hits it as Minnesota calls for time.
10:14 - Hawkins finds Garcia with a swift pass as Garcia hits the uncontested layup, then Hall continues to take advantage of the match-up against Garcia as he draws the foul on the jumpshot. But Hall missed both free throws and this is still a one-point game.
11:07 - After the timeout, Hall makes the free throw to give the Spartans a one-point lead. On the next Minnesota possession, Holloman strips Garcia inside and then goes on the other end and hits the floater as the Spartans are on a 8-0 run and are now up three.
Michigan State 49, Minnesota 49 - TV Timeout, 2nd Half
11:51 - No worries, as Hoggard makes a three from the corner to bring the Spartans within two as he has yet to miss a shot during this game. After a Minnesota miss, Hall comes back into the game and immediately attacks Garcia, spinning inside and hitting the and-one layup. Hall will shoot the free throw after the timeout.
12:56 - After a foul was called on Holloman on the drive from Hawkins, the officials look to see if Cooper committed goaltending. After review, the call stands and Hawkins makes the free throw for a rare three-point play off a called goaltending.
13:29 - MSU has shown they can run the break today, as Hoggard makes another layup off a Minnesota miss. But on the other end, Christie pulls up and hits his second three of the half for another lead change.
14:17 - Garcia gets open near the basket after a pump-fake, but blows the shot and then Mitchell fouls Kohler, but the Spartans again go 1-for-2 at the free throw line.
14:48 - Hawkins drives inside and finds Christie in the corner for a big three to give Minnesota the lead again. On the other end, Fox fouls Holloman on the drive for his fourth foul, but Holloman splits the free throws.
Michigan State 40, Minnesota 40 - TV Timeout, 2nd Half
15:51 - Fox commits his third foul of the game as we take a TV timeout in a tie game.
16:23 - After another Minnesota turnover from Payne, Kohler shows off the footwork inside with a few spins in the post and hits the layup after a smooth pump-fake to tie the game at 40.
17:21 - Akins throws the ball away on a bad pass, but Hoggard gets the steal on the other end and this time feeds Walker for the layup, but Michigan State still trails by two.
18:21 - Booker tried to go for highlight of the game by dunking on a Minnesota defender but couldn't finish it. Walker gets the steal on Payne and finds Hoggard on the fast-break for a layup.
19:09 - The second-half starts as Payne gets the offensive rebound and a put-back shot, then Cooper answers back with a layup. Payne is fouled by Hall, who now has three fouls as Payne makes both free throws.
Minnesota 34, Michigan State 32 - End of 1st Half
End of half - Walker can't make the pull-up jumper at the buzzer as Michigan State goes into halftime down two in a classic back-and-forth match-up. This should continue to be a tight game going into the second-half as both teams seem evenly matched so far.
1:01 - Michigan State can't score off the short timeout as Cooper misses the hook shot, but Garcia makes another shit inside as the Golden Gophers take the lead yet again.
2:05 - Mike Mitchell Jr. drains the open three-pointer from the corner, but Akins answers back with a jumper as the game is tied again.
2:51 - After Michigan State and Minnesota trade made-buckets, Coen Carr tries to slam down the lob from Hoggard but Fox is called for the foul. Carr makes both free throws as both teams continue to trade holding the lead.
Minnesota 27, Michigan State 26 - TV Timeout, 1st Half
3:45 - After Fox makes a floater to give Minnesota the lead again, Payne is called for the foul as we are watching a good back-and-forth battle between the No. 8 and 9 seeds in the Big Ten Tournament.
4:24 - After Walker slips his way inside for a nice layup, the Spartans are still forcing turnovers as a Hoggard steal leads to him getting fouled on the fast-break layup. He makes both as Michigan State retakes a one-point lead.
6:12 - Hoggard almost loses the ball, but Akins regains it and finds Booker for another lob as the bench for MSU has really held their own today.
7:22 - After Fox makes both his free throws and following a Holloman turnover, Garcia gets close to the hoop and makes a layup with Cooper contesting as Minnesota extends the lead back to five.
Minnesota 21, Michigan State 20 - TV Timeout, 1st Half
7:46 - Holloman is called for the foul on Fox, who will go to the line after we take a TV Timeout.
8:01 - Michigan State answers with back-to-back threes from their guards, as Walker hits the first and Akins makes the second after a steal from Cooper. Just like that, the Spartans cut a seven-point deficit into just one-point.
9:14 - Garcia is hounded by Cooper in the corner, but creates space and knocks down the three as the Golden Gophers go on a big 11-0 run after the timeout to take a 21-14 lead.
9:45 - Hoggard turns the ball over, then Hawkins finds Parker Fox on the pick-and-roll for an easy dunk as Minnesota extends their lead again.
10:32 - Pharell Payne blocks Kohler on the layup, then Elijah Hawkins pulls up for the quick three-pointer and makes it. Then after a quick miss from Kohler, Payne makes the and-one layup after being fouled from Hall. He makes the free throw and Minnesota retakes the lead.
11:44 - Braeden Carrington misses the three-pointer for Minnesota, but on the other end Coen Carr barrels right through a Minnesota defender and is called for the offensive foul.
Michigan State 14, Minnesota 10 - Minnesota Timeout, 1st Half
12:26 - Holloman gets the steal and finds Hall on the fast-break for a huge dunk as Minnesota calls their first timeout. Spartans beginning to roll on a 14-3 run after their slow start.
13:10 - After Parker Fox splits his free throws from a Hall foul to tie the game, Hoggard makes a shot for MSU to take a two-point lead.
13:27 - After a made three-pointer from Tre Holloman, Jaxon Kohler makes a layup as Michigan State takes the lead for the first time today. The bench for MSU currently has nine of the 10 points so far.
15:04 - Garcia goes to the line after the foul from Cooper but misses both free throws. After a missed three-pointer from Booker, Cam Christie drives and makes a tough contested layup.
Minnesota 7, Michigan State 5 - TV Timeout, 1st Half
15:30 - Carson Cooper is called for the foul as we take our first TV timeout of the game.
16:04 - Michigan State with a nice play as A.J. Hoggard drives and lobs it up for Xavier Booker for the dunk. Then the Spartans get another stop on Minnesota as Jaden Akins finds Booker on the fast-break for a one-handed slam as MSU pulls back within two.
17:06 - After Minnesota's Mike Mitchell makes a jumper to extend their lead to 7-0, Cooper is fouled again on the drive and splits the free throws to finally put the Spartans on the board.
17:42 - Malik Hall misses the turnaround jumper, but Carson Cooper gets the offensive rebound and is fouled on the putback shot. Cooper misses both free throws as MSU hasn't made a shot in their first three attempts.
19:06 - Minnesota's Dawson Garcia gets the first made bucket of the game, an open three-pointer to give the Golden Gophers an early lead.
Michigan State wins the tip-off to start the game. Tyson Walker misses the first shot, and can't save the ball from going out of bounds so possession goes to Minnesota.
Pregame
Michigan State begins its Big Ten Tournament campaign in an early Thursday game, taking on Minnesota in the Target Center in Minneapolis.
The Spartans look to have a good run in the conference tournament to help NCAA Tournament seeding. They lost four of their last five games, including their regular-season finale, 65-64, against Indiana, to create this matchup against the Golden Gophers.
The winner of this game still might face a short stint in the tournament, facing the No. 1 seeded and No. 3 nationally ranked Purdue Boilermakers in the quarterfinals.
Follow along here for live updates from Detroit News contributor Kameron Goodwill.
Big Ten Tournament, second round
NO. 8 SEED MICHIGAN STATE vs. NO. 9 MINNESOTA
Tip-off: Noon Thursday, Target Center, Minneapolis
Records: Both teams are 18-13
When they met this season: The teams split their regular-season meetings. Michigan State won, 76-66, on Jan. 18 in East Lansing, and Minnesota won, 59-56, on Feb. 6 in Minneapolis.
At stake: Winner will play No. 1 seed Purdue (28-3) in the quarterfinals, noon Friday.