Michigan State was able to notch a win in the Gavitt Tipoff Games matchup against Butler Friday night in East Lansing. The Spartans move to 2-2 on the season thanks to a 74-54 victory over the Bulldogs.
Michigan State started this game with a bit of a shake up to the starting lineup with sophomore Carson Cooper getting inserted over senior Mady Sissoko. Early on it seemed to pay dividends as MSU was able to change the narrative to start this game versus Butler, getting off to a fast start as the Spartans roared out to a quick 7-2 lead behind the play of Tyson Walker and Jaden Akins.
Early on, shots were falling and the Spartans were getting great looks. But the Bulldogs were not going away easy. Butler was able to take advantage of MSU's second unit thanks to senior Posh Alexander who was able to tie the game at 15 mid way through the first half.
At that point, Walker took it upon himself to go into takeover mode. The graduate guard was able to score from everywhere on the court, whether it was off the pick and roll or isolation. His buckets, combined with some great defense on the other end, gave MSU a 37-25 advantage at half. The Spartans held the Bulldogs to 25.9% shooting in the first half, causing the Big East member to look disjointed in its half-court game. The Spartans were led by Walker's 16 points in the first half on 6-for-11 shooting.
Coming out of the halftime locker room at halftime, the Spartans got things started with a bang, opening the half with a sweet pass from A.J. Hoggard to Malik Hall for the slam.
As the Spartans looked to increase the lead, Butler just never seemed to go away. Jahmyl Telfort was able to hit a couple threes to keep MSU from pulling away, cutting the Bulldogs' deficit to just seven with 14:53 remaining.
Timely baskets by Hall and Akins were able to restore MSU's lead back to double digits shortly after. A Tre Holloman trey just before the under 12 media timeout extended the lead to 51-37 in favor of the Spartans.
Just like in the first half for Michigan State, a senior was able to step up and take over the scoring load for the second half. Instead of Tyson Walker, the second half saw senior Malik Hall step forward. Hall was able to use his quickness and size to score numerous times in the post as MSU's lead ballooned to 64-48 with just under four minutes left.
With the veterans scoring most of the game, it was time for the freshmen to get in on the action as Xavier Booker and Jeremy Fears Jr. both hit 3-pointers on back to back possessions to increase their team's lead to 70-50. Some late baskets and free throws by both teams closed out the game with a 74-54 victory for MSU.
The Spartans were led by Tyson Walker who finished the night with 21 points. AJ Hoggard was also able to breakout of his slump, scoring 14 points and also dishing out four assists alongside six rebounds.
The Spartans return to the Breslin Center on Sunday, Nov. 19 to take on Alcorn State at 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time on the Big Ten Network.
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