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Indiana Upsets No. 11 Michigan State, Keeps Tom Izzo from Surpassing Bob Knight’s Record
Feb
Indiana Upsets No. 11 Michigan State, Keeps Tom Izzo from Surpassing Bob Knight’s Record
Malik Reneau scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half to lead Indiana to a 71-67 victory over No. 11 Michigan State on Tuesday night, preventing Tom Izzo from surpassing Bob Knight’s Big Ten wins record.
The Hoosiers (15-10, 6-8 Big Ten) snapped a five-game losing streak under head coach Mike Woodson, who has announced he will step down at the end of the season.
Meanwhile, the Spartans (19-5, 10-3 Big Ten) have now lost three of their last four games. Izzo remains tied with Knight at 353 Big Ten victories, a record Knight set while leading Indiana to three NCAA championships.
Jaden Akins scored 14 points for Michigan State, while Jase Richardson added 13.
Myles Rice added 10 points for Indiana, including two key free throws with 30 seconds left that gave the Hoosiers a four-point lead. Oumar Ballo added 14 points, and Luke Goode scored 10.
Takeaways
Indiana: The Hoosiers were expected to chase a second-place finish in the Big Ten, and were ranked as high as No. 14 in the AP Top 25 in November, showing flashes of their potential. Though they fell behind, by double digits early, they surged ahead by halftime and were in control for all of the second half.
Michigan State: Defensive struggles in the paint were costly, with Indiana scoring 38 points in the paint. And the depth of Hoosiers post players likely accounted for his foul trouble, too; Jaxon Kohler picked up his third foul just minutes into the second half and played only 18 minutes total, his own game-wrecking inability trumped by Indiana playing multiple capable post players.
Key Moment
Mackenzie Mgbako made two clutch free throws with 9.4 seconds to play, giving Indiana a three-point lead.
Key Stat
The Spartans shot only 38.2% from the field and 4-of-23 from 3-point range.
Up Next
Michigan State visits Illinois on Saturday night, and Indiana hosts UCLA on Friday night.
