Despite a monstrous second-half performance by No. 21 Michigan State, the Spartans were unable to overcome No. 3 Arizona on Thanksgiving Day in the Acrisure Classic in Palm Springs, California. The Spartans fell 74-68 to the Wildcats to drop to 3-3 on the 2023-2024 season, while U of A remains undefeated at 6-0.
Tyson Walker led all scorers for the day with 18 points, finishing the game on 8-for-20 shooting. He also led the team in helpers with four on the day.
Meanwhile, A.J. Hoggard added 15 points and Jaden Akins scored 12. Hoggard finished the day 5-for-14 from the field and a perfect 5-for-5 from the free throw line while Akins managed 50% from the field on 5-for-10 shooting. Mady Sissoko had 10 boards on the night for MSU while Carson Cooper earned the start at center and finished the game with six boards.
Arizona saw five players finish in double figures for scoring led by Caleb Love's 17 points. Keshad Johnson finished with a double double as well, scoring 13 points alongside 10 rebounds.
Despite Malik Hall getting things started for the Spartans with the first of the team's points, MSU once again got off to a slow start in this one. Initially keeping up with the Wildcats in the opening minutes, Arizona went off for a 6-0 run over the final almost two minutes leading up to the first media timeout.
At the 15:38 mark, MSU trailed 10-4 on 2-for-6 shooting from the field. Michigan State also trailed heavily on the glass already with a 7-3 disadvantage.
Shooting woes did not relent for MSU as play resumed. Attempts to drive to the basket were stymied by Arizona's height, while a tough defense limited outside shooting opportunities.
The Wildcats already totaled three blocks by the second media timeout of the half, and the Spartans were a mere 3-for-13 from the field. At the 11:41 mark, Michigan State trailed 14-7.
Coming out of the timeout, things only got worse for the Spartans. Using a 9-0 run started by a layup prior to the media break, the Wilcats' lead ballooned out to 21-7 before a 3-pointer by Hall, his second of the first half, snapped the run.
MSU tried its best to hang with U of A through the stretch around the midway point of the half, but the Wildcats made it as difficult as possible. Despite back-to-back scores by Walker, a trey followed by a layup, and a pair of free throws from Sissoko, Arizona gained its largest lead of the game with a 32-17 advantage thanks to a score by Kylan Boswell courtesy of a turnover from Carr with 5:29 left in the half.
Finally, things began to click down the stretch for the Spartans. MSU finished the half on a 11-6 advantage, including a 6-0 run shortly after Walker hit the big trey highlighted below.
MSU headed into the locker room at the half trailing 40-30, but had a rough go down low with a 12-24 disadvantage in the paint. The Spartans ended the half with just 39% shooting from the field to the Wildcats' 52%. While 3-point shooting wasn't terrible by this season's standards, MSU's 3-for-9 from deep trailed U of A's 4-for-10, and the Spartans shot just 12-for-31 from the field overall.
Walker led the team, and all scorers, at halftime with 14 points.
Michigan State could not have started the second half more opposite than it did its first half. The Spartans came out swinging with a slam by Akins and mounted a 9-2 run to cut the deficit to three, trailing 42-39 with 16:35 left in the game.
By the first media timeout, the Spartans had cut their halftime deficit in half, trailing just 47-42.
MSU's momentum stalled from there, though. The Wildcats dug in and kept the Spartans from being able to get any closer than that. Every time Michigan State would score, Arizona responded and kept its lead between five and seven points through to the next media timeout with 11:55 remaining, leading 51-44.
Finally Akins broke through the logjam. Amongst a monster second half performance, the junior guard grabbed an offensive board off a Hoggard missed jumper and put it back from deep to cut Arizona's lead to four, trailing 51-55.
The Wildcats were able to respond with a layup by Caleb Love, but Akins had a pullup jumper of his own right back to keep it within four with 8:48 remaining.
A 4-0 run by Arizona split on either side of the next media timeout pushed the Wildcats' lead back to eight with 7:52 remaining. A layup by Ballo with 8:36 remaining in the game would be the last field goal by Arizona for for almost five minutes of game action, though. The Spartans used the time to cut U of A's lead to as little as just one, trailing 62-61 with 5:09 left thanks to a pair of free throws by Carr.
Then Hoggard stepped in for a huge play after Ball pushed Arizona's lead back to two. A monster layup tied it up while drawing the foul before his extra free throw gave the Spartans their first lead of the game, up 64-63 with just 4:37 remaining.
A layup by Hoggard extended MSU's lead to 66-63 one possession later, but the Spartans couldn't hold on down that final stretch. Arizona used a 8-0 run to retake the lead 71-66 with 1:23 remaining, and the Spartans couldn't find the stops to prevent it. Final score by the buzzer was 74-68.
Michigan State would have been hard pressed to put together a stronger second half performance in the matchup, though. The Spartans held the Wildcats to just 39.3% shooting from the field, including just 11% from deep. MSU also won the points in the paint battle, notching a 20-18 advantage in the half after the poor performance in the first.
Despite rebounding struggles on the season, MSU also played competitively on the glass, finishing the game by a somewhat respectable 39-34 disadvantage overall. Michigan State even won the turnover battle, giving up only nine to Arizona's 10. Still, it wasn't enough to overcome poor first half shooting and defensive struggles.
Michigan State returns to the court next on Tuesday when it hosts Georgia Southern. Start time is set for 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time with the game being broadcast on the Big Ten Network.
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