Saturday night's game was another step in the right direction, in a season full of steps in, we’ll say, “many directions.”

MSU gets their first win at the Crisler Center since the 18’-19’ season, pulling away late to a final score of 73-63. Most simply put, Malik Hall and Tyson Walker were not going to be denied.

”We realized we needed to pull away,” Hall said, recapping MSU's 9-0 scoring run, to gain the lead, and then shutting out the Wolverines in the final 7:03.

Poor shooting were demons MSU had seemingly excorcised, entering the game red hot from beyond the arc the last month and a half or so. Tonight, however, was a recurrence of the shooting woes of November.

Yet, even shooting 2/14 from the three point line, when the chips were down, this veteran team rallied around their leaders.

“Coach (Izzo) always says a player-coached team is better than a coach-coached team,” Hoggard said. "So we had to step up, we wanted this one so bad. Leaders lead, veterans step up."

This marks MSU’s third Big Ten road win this season. When asked how he felt in this road environment, Hall said it didn't really feel like a road game.

"Not really," he said. "And they (Michigan) might not like that.”

"When we got done with the national anthem and everyone started with the “Go Green, Go White” (chants), we were like ‘alright this is a home game for us,'" said Carson Cooper.

With Michigan losing 12 of their last 14 games, many wondered what kind of showing Michigan fans would bring, and also, would the Spartan faithful take over?

Here's a glimpse into one of many instances of Crisler Center being tagged as "Southeast Lansing"...

Leaving the arena, I overheard a Michigan fan joke to his friend, describing the atmosphere tonight as the "loudest it’s been all year."

I'll take his word for it.

it seemed at every moment of this game when MSU would apply pressure and go on a run, the Wolverines had a response. MSU had AJ Hoggard sidelined with foul trouble and that left MSU in unfamiliar territory, relying on extended minutes for sophomore guard Tre Holloman.

“You know Tyson (Walker) jinxed me before the game,” Hoggard joked following the game. "He said don't get two early fouls, next thing I know I look up and I got two fouls. But the young guys are ready to play, we talked a lot about our bench coming in and being effective, whether I had foul trouble or not — they wanted this game for us."

This game was the story of two very differently positioned teams in regards to depth, evident by the 23-2 disparity in bench scoring favoring MSU.

“Coach told us at halftime the gap in bench points, 17-0,” Carson Cooper said. “Coen (Carr) came in, made big shots, (Xavier) Booker grabbed some good rebounds, Jaxon (Kohler) was going crazy, Davis (Smith) came in and hit two big free throws, the bench single handedly kept us in this game.”

The Spartans knew they needed to keep chipping away, and they could eventually wear this Michigan team down.

Davis Smith's impact on this team may not always be apparent, but listening to his teammates, it's undeniable the impact and respect he warrants.

”Davis means a lot to us,” Hoggard said. "He brings it every day on an elite level, I wish you guys could see all the stuff he does, how he helps us prepare. For him, growing up in this rivalry, and getting the opportunity to come in, get fouled, and knock them both down, and not blink about it, was just big, and a fun moment to see somebody who's been about this rivalry since they were born, thrive in the moment.”

Walker gave a concise response to the boost that Smith's free throws offered.

"Big time, big time," he said, with a smile and nod.

Smith was, for obvious reasons, a popular man with the media after the game, and apparently with his teammates at halftime and following the win.

"The Michigan game was always something I dreamed of as a kid," Smith said. "Just being able to have impact, come in there and do what I can. I’ve always had confidence in myself, my teammates are confident in me, so they kind of knew I’d knock it down, they were happy to see me do it.”

Davis was asked if he had talked with his dad yet.

"Yeah, yeah, he’s losing it," Davis said. "He was just glad I could make my free throws. (He) said that's something he couldn’t do.”

He shared that his dad is always "ready with the jokes."

All in all, MSU did what was expected of them, beating a battered Michigan team on the cusp of missing out on the NCAA tournament for a second year in a row.

MSU will have a short turnaround as they host the high-scoring Iowa Hawkeyes, fresh off a win against No. 20 Wisconsin. Tip-off will be 7:00 p.m. Tuesday at the Breslin Center.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Join the discussion on this article in our premium forums by clicking here.

You can also follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Threads, TikTok, and Instagram.

For video content, including our Red Cedar Radar podcast, find us on YouTube and consider subscribing.