It was a complete battle in East Lansing between two top-tier programs, but No. 12 Michigan State (15-2, 6-0) ended on top, 80-78. No. 19 Illinois (13-4, 5-2) came out strong but struggled with foul trouble, free throws and three-point shooting led to the defeat.
Hustle, pace, aggression
The first half was marked by speed and all-out effort from both teams. They fought hard for offensive rebounds in each possession, drove fast to the rim and held ground on one-on-one matchups. The highlight on the court was no doubt freshman forward Will Riley.
As a sixth man, Riley scored a whopping 16 points in just the first 10 minutes of the game. He looked smooth from behind the arc, sacrificed his body to make last-second layups and took highly contested shots to get his team ahead. His start was the momentum the Illini needed, especially since freshman guard Kasparas Jakucionis sat on the bench early after he racked up two personal fouls just three minutes in.
With about seven minutes left in the first half, Illinois led 28-22 over Michigan State. Possession after possession, the teams played with pure physicality. But with great aggression, comes plentiful foul calls. The Spartans scored nine points from the free-throw line in 14 attempts, and the Illini only put up three in five attempts. For a team like Michigan State, toughness is required, but it comes with a cost.
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End of half collapse
Illinois led by 10 at one point, but its scoring and lead died down at the end of the first half. After 20 minutes, the Illini and Spartans were even at 36. Each time Illinois found its footing and scored, Michigan State had a response. Illinois’ red-hot shooting simmered down, and Michigan State seemed to get each ball to fall into the hoop in the final minutes of the half.
The Illini continued their force and amassed 11 offensive rebounds in comparison to the Spartans’ four. However, it was not enough to keep a solid lead over the home team. It also didn’t help that Jakucionis was scoreless in the half, and junior guards Kylan Boswell and Tre White were a combined 1-7 from the field. Riley and sophomore center Tomislav Ivisic, who scored eight points, were Illinois’ scoring leaders.
Continued struggles from the superstars
The beginning of the second half brought frustration to the Illini, especially Jakucionis. He found himself back on the bench after the referees called two questionable personal fouls on him just a few minutes into the half. Then, with 12 minutes left, Riley picked up his fourth personal foul as well and the game was still tied at 54.
Michigan State took it upon itself to dominate underneath and around the rim. While Illinois thrived on the offensive glass in the first half, Michigan State amped up its efforts for second-chance opportunities. The Spartans excelled at driving to the hoop to force contact from the Illini, and an and-one from redshirt freshman guard Jeremy Fears Jr. gave the Spartans a seven-point advantage over the Illini.
Then, right after Jakucionis scored his first points of the game, he fouled out. Spartan junior guard Tre Holloman was stealthy in the paint and eased his way past Illini defenders. Desperate to score, Illinois forced up threes in hopes of coming back, but none of them fell.
Final action
With three minutes to go, Michigan State had a six-point lead after head coach Brad Underwood received a technical foul. Boswell, Ivisic, Riley, graduate student forward Ben Humrichous and freshman forward Morez Johnson Jr. were the five fighters on the court for the Illini.
Solid ball movement and lockdown defense cut the lead to one at 78-77, but Boswell turned it over with six seconds left. After successful Spartan free throws, they elected to foul Boswell rather than letting the Illini try for a three-pointer. The game concluded with just a two-point deficit for the Illini, and the Spartans added to their win streak.
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