In the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday, No. 7 seed Michigan State defeated No. 2 seed Marquette 69-60 behind 23 points from Tyson Walker. This victory returned coach Tom Izzo’s team to the Sweet 16 for the first time in four years.
Photo Cred: MLive.com Photo Cred: Fox News (Izzo)
A.J. Hoggard and Joey Hauser, a Marquette transfer, both scored 14 points as 13th-ranked Michigan State (21-12) took control in the final three minutes. The Spartans advanced and will take on third-seeded Kansas State on Thursday at Madison Square Garden in New York. The Golden Eagles demolished Vermont in the March Madness opening round after winning the Big East Tournament, but Michigan State proved to be a much tougher opponent.
Photo Cred: Detroit Free Press (Hoggard) Photo Cred: The Only Colors (Hauser)
11 of the Golden Eagles’ 16 errors came in the second half, and those miscues allowed the Spartans to score 19 points. At the midway point of the second half, the Spartans broke out of their shooting slump and began to pull away. After the half, they made 15 of their 17 free throw attempts. The Big East Player of the Year, Tyler Kolek, suffered a thumb injury in the first round on Friday night after he grabbed it on a Vermont player’s jersey. He scored eight points overall in that contest.
Photo Cred: Detroit Free Press Photo Cred: Forbes (Kolek)
With seven points, six errors, and four fouls against Michigan State, he wasn’t much of a factor. The next opponent for Michigan State is Kansas State, which is competing in its first Sweet 16 game since 2018 and its first under head coach Jerome Tang.
Photo Cred: NCAA.com Photo Cred: Wikipedia (Tang)
