Michigan State On Bubble After Tournament Loss To Minnesota
The Michigan State Spartans’ NCAA Tournament bid is in doubt after they lost to the Minnesota Golden Gophers in the Big Ten quarterfinals on Friday.
The Michigan State Spartans (19-14, 10-8) will be hoping to hear their names called at the Selection Show on Sunday after losing to the Minnesota Golden Gophers (24-8, 11-7), 63-58.
Both teams struggled offensively in a tight first half. Neither team built a lead larger than five and the lead changed ten times in the first half as Minnesota took a 28-26 advantage to halftime. The Spartans outrebounded the Golden Gophers 25-14 in the first half, including 12 offensive rebounds, but only shot 8/29 (28%) from the floor and 3/16 (19%) from the three-point line.
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Minnesota held on to their lead for most of the second half, leading by as many as eight points before a Matt McQuaid three put Michigan State ahead 52-50 with 5:40 left. The Golden Gophers went on an 8-0 run, however, and held on to their lead down the stretch, picking up 63-58.
Nick Ward had a double-double for the Spartans with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Miles Bridges led Michigan State in scoring with 20 points and also picked up seven rebounds. The Spartans outrebounded Minnesota 41-36, but shot poorly from the floor, shooting 19/58 (32.8%) overall and 6/30 from beyond the arc (20%).
Four Golden Gophers scored in double digits, led by Reggie Lynch‘s 16 points. Jordan Murphy had a double-double with ten points and a team-leading 13 rebounds. Amir Coffey scored 13 points and Nate Mason added ten. Akeem Springs left the game with an Achilles tendon injury and is expected to miss the rest of the season.
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The Spartans have no more scheduled games and will need to wait for the Selection Show on Sunday to find out if they will make the NCAA Tournament. Michigan State is currently a 10-seed in Joe Lunardi’s bracketology and are generally expected to gain an at-large bid.