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  • No. 8 Michigan State Survives A Trip To No. 16 Maryland Thanks To A Buzzer-Beater

No. 8 Michigan State Survives A Trip To No. 16 Maryland Thanks To A Buzzer-Beater

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Basketball

Junior guard Tre Holloman hit a 3-pointer from past half court as time expired, lifting No. 8 Michigan State to a 58-55 win over No. 16 Maryland on Wednesday night in front of a sold-out crowd at Xfinity Center.

Freshman guard Jase Richardson scored 15 points and had a career-high eight rebounds to lead the Spartans. Richardson was the only MSU player to score in double figures but the Spartans had all 10 players who played score at least two points.

Holloman finished with nine points, three assists and two rebounds, while senior center Szymon Zapala had seven points and six rebounds.

Records
Michigan State, winners of four-straight games and five of the last six overall, improves to 23-5 overall and 14-3 in the Big Ten Conference, while Maryland falls to 21-7 overall and 11-6 in league play.

Recap

  • After a sluggish first half, the Spartans took the lead early in the second half and had taken a nine-point lead (52-43) with 5:24 left and still led by seven points, 55-48, after a 3-pointer from redshirt freshman guard Jeremy Fears Jr. with 3:12 to play.
  • Over the next three minutes, however, Maryland would chip away from the free throw line, with seven shots, including two from Ja'Kobi Gillespie with 42 seconds left that tied the game at 55-all.
  • After an MSU shot was off the mark with 12 seconds left, Maryland's Gillespie missed a 3-pointer with three seconds left.
  • Junior forward Jaxon Kohler grabbed the defensive rebound, dished it to Holloman, who launched a shot from the left side past mid-court that sank at the buzzer, giving MSU the win.
  • Both teams struggled from the field in the first half and continued in the opening minutes of the second half.
  • The Spartans trailed 27-24 before using a 6-0 burst over 1:13 to take a 30-27 lead following free throws and a jumper from Holloman and a driving layup from Carr at 14:52, forcing Maryland to call a timeout.
  • After Maryland tied the game at 30-all, a floating jumper from Holloman, a 3-pointer from sophomore forward and a dunk from Zapala gave MSU a 37-31 lead (12:28).
  • The Terrapins tied the game at 39-all on a 3-pointer from Rodney Rice (8:49), but the Spartans responded with a 13-4 run over 3:22 and took a 52-43 lead on a pull-up jumper from Richardson (5:24).
  • Fears hit his 3-pointer with 3:12 left to make it 55-48, setting up the dramatic final minutes.
  • Michigan State went into the break down 23-21 after a layup with time winding down from Maryland's Selton Miguel, capping a first half that had four lead changes and six ties.
  • The Spartans had jumped out to an early 7-2 lead after three-straight baskets from Richardson and a driving layup from Fears at 17:36.
  • MSU took an 11-4 lead on a driving layup from Richardson at 15:36 before Maryland pulled to within 11-10 on a three-point play from Ja'Kobi Gillespie at 14:33.
  • Both teams were scoreless for three minutes before senior forward Frankie Fidler pushed MSU's lead back to 13-10 on a layup.
  • The Terps tied the game at 13-all on a 3-pointer from Rodney Rice (9:54) and the teams went back and forth over the final eight minutes of the half with three ties and four lead changes.
  • The Spartans had their final lead of the half when Fidler scored at 1:54 to take a 21-19 lead but the Terps scored the final four points of the opening 20 minutes.

Key Stats

  • After turning the ball over nine times in the first half, the Spartans committed just three in the second half.
  • Michigan State did not hit a 3-pointer in the first half and connected on 4-of-10 attempts in the second half.
  • The Spartans shot just 29.0 percent in the first half, but connected on 38.2 percent in the second half (13-of-34).
  • MSU out-rebounded Maryland, 45-33, collected 13 offensive rebounds and out-scored the Terrapins, 28-16, in the paint.
  • Michigan State's bench outscored Maryland's, 23-0.

Up Next
Michigan State returns home for its penultimate game of the regular season at the Breslin Center, hosting Wisconsin on Sunday, March 2. The game will air live on CBS at 1:30 p.m., with Spero Dedes and Jim Spanarkel calling all of the action.