Michigan
26-5; 15-5
Michigan State
25-6; 16-4
Michigan Falls to Michigan State in Regular-Season Finale
3/9/2019 11:23:00 PM | Men's Basketball
» Michigan concluded the regular season with a 75-63 loss at Michigan State.
» Michigan clinched the No. 3 seed in the Big Ten Tournament.
» Ignas Brazdeikis scored 20 points and grabbed four rebounds in 22 minutes.
» Jordan Poole contributed 15 points.
Site: East Lansing, Mich. (Breslin Center)
Score: #9 Michigan State 75, #7 Michigan 63
Records: U-M (26-5, 15-5 Big Ten), MSU (25-6, 16-4 Big Ten)
Next U-M Event: Friday, Mar. 15 – Big Ten Tournament – Quarterfinals (Chicago, Ill.) TV: BTN
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- The University of Michigan men's basketball team (No. 7 AP, No. 7 Coaches Poll) came up short against No. 9-ranked Michigan State in the regular-season finale on Saturday Night (March 9) at Breslin Center. With the loss, Michigan is the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament.
Despite playing sporadically due to foul trouble, freshman Ignas Brazdeikis led Michigan with a team-high 20 points, while adding four boards. Sophomore Jordan Poole also added 15 points.
The Michigan State offense got going with just under 10 minutes remaining in the second half, including a 20-2 run that included 10 consecutive Spartan baskets to extend its lead to 65-52 with six minutes remaining.
To begin the contest, Michigan got out to a fast start, scoring the first five points on a Poole layup and Brazdeikis three-pointer. Zavier Simpson followed up his two assists with a signature hook shot layup, and the Wolverines led, 7-2, in the first two and a half minutes.
Coming out of a media timeout, Brazdeikis added 10 more points, including a fast break dunk to give him 12 points in the early stages the game on 5-for-5 shooting. The Maize and Blue led, 19-12, with just under 12 minutes remaining in the half.
A three-pointer from Eli Brooks at the 9:38 mark in the first gave the Maize and Blue seven assists.
A fadeaway jumper from Poole extended the Michigan lead to 29-19 at the under-eight minute media timeout. Brazdeikis and Poole paced the scoring early with a combined 22 points. However, both Isaiah Livers and Brazdeikis were forced to sit towards the end of the half with two fouls each.
After a quick 6-0 Michigan run, the Spartans went on a 6-0 run of their own to cut the lead to 35-29 with just under 90 seconds remaining in the first half, and the Wolverines would hold that advantage at halftime. Brazdeikis and Poole led the Michigan scorers with 12 and 10 points, respectively.
The Wolverines forced nine Spartan first-half turnovers -- three more than they had forced the entire game in their first meeting against Michigan State (six, Feb. 24). Michigan shot 50 percent (15-of-30) in the first half, including 45.5 percent (5-of-11) from three.
To open the second half, two baskets from Jon Teske and six points from the Spartans made it a four-point game, 39-35 in the first 90 seconds.
The teams would take a 41-37 score into the first media timeout of the second half. Both offenses struggled to score, shooting a combined 1-for-11 over a stretch of three and a half minutes.
Out of the break, Brazdeikis made a jumper to end the scoring drought. Colin Castleton followed it up with a layup on the next possession for his first points of the night, and the Wolverines led, 45-40, with under 15 minutes to play in the game.
Brazdeikis connected on another trey, only to have it answered on the other end with a three from Spartan guard Foster Loyer, but the Maize and Blue maintained its five-point edge. A third foul on Brazdeikis sent him to the bench 12:57 remaining.
Michigan State took advantage of his absence and tied the game at 50 with just under 11 minutes remaining. Shortly thereafter, a bank shot three-pointer from Cassius Winston elevated the Spartans to its first lead, 53-50.
Brazdeikis fouled out with 5:10 remaining in the game, and finished with 20 points and four rebounds. A three from Poole cut the MSU lead to 10 points, 66-56, with five minutes to go in the second half.
Fouls over the next several minutes led to a 71-61 Spartan advantage with 1:30 to play.
The Wolverines will be the No. 3 seed when they travel to Chicago, Illinois, to begin the defense of their back-to-back Big Ten Tournament titles on Friday (March 15). Opening tip is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. CDT. Michigan's opponent is yet to be determined, and the game will be broadcast on Big Ten Network.
