Spartans pull away late to beat No. 12 Wisconsin 69-63
AP
Mar 11, 2022
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) Marcus Bingham Jr. embraced being the game-changer Friday night.
Tyson Walker helped seventh-seeded Michigan State Spartans make sure the title stuck.
Bingham scored 11 of his career-high matching 19 points during a crucial second-half stretch and Walker scored nine of his 11 points in the final 93 seconds to help the Spartans beat No. 12 Wisconsin Badgers 69-63 in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals.
''I was getting challenged by my coaches,'' Bingham said. ''I felt like the last two games coming in, I was slacking in some areas and I just wanted to get it back right.''
It was an astounding twist. Bingham hadn't topped the 15-point mark since mid-December and entered tourney play with only two double-doubles all season. With 10 rebounds Friday, he now has two in two days.
And this one came as the Big Ten's top two seeds and regular-season co-champs, Wisconsin and No. 16 Illinois, both lost in the quarterfinals for the first time. The top-seeded Fighting Illini fell to Indiana in the first game Friday.
Michigan State (22-11) lost five of its last seven regular-season games but now finds itself one win away from playing in a sixth title game in 10 tourneys.
''It's been an interesting year,'' Spartans coach Tom Izzo said, ''but to do what we did, to play the way we did defensively, to keep the turnovers down after four or five early and then going inside to my big guy, who finally stayed inside, which was important, was big,.
Brad Davison led the Badgers (24-7) with 23 points.
Big Ten player of the year Johnny Davis played through an ankle injury but struggled. He missed his first eight shots, went 3 of 19 from the field, 0 for 5 on 3-pointers and wound up with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Davis refused to blame the poor shooting on the injury, even though Izzo thought the lack of practice time probably had an impact.
Wisconsin lost its second straight for the first time all season - both by six or fewer points after starting the season with 15 straight wins in games that close.
Bingham swung the game in the second half by scoring all of the points in the Spartans' 11-2 run that erased a 40-36 deficit and gave Michigan State a 47-42 with 7:57 left.
They never trailed again though the Badgers tied the score at 58 on Chucky Hepburn's 3 with 1:56 to play. Walker answered with a short jumper to break the tie and a 15-footer to make it 62-58 with 58.4 seconds left.
Michigan State closed it out at the free-throw line.
''I thought there were times we let him (Bingham) catch it too deep and too easily and we didn't give his defender enough support,'' Badgers coach Greg Gard said. ''He was better than what we were defensively.''
BIG PICTURE
Michigan State: The Spartans helped their NCAA Tournament seeding with this win. How far they'll climb remains to be seen, but they're just one win away from reaching the Big Ten title game for the sixth time in 10 tourneys.
Wisconsin: With Davis struggling, the Badgers weren't themselves. They shot 24.1% in the first half in a game that was reminiscent of their 2000 national semifinal game. Michigan State also won that one, 53-41, en route to coach Tom Izzo's only national championship.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
The Badgers almost certainly will slide in the final rankings Monday but where they'll end up may be determined by how many upsets occur in conference tournaments this weekend. More interesting will be seeing how the NCAA Tournament selection committee views Davis' injury after Friday's game - or whether it costs Wisconsin a chance of playing in nearby Milwaukee.
STAT PACK
Michigan State: Walker also had seven assists. ... Izzo has beaten Wisconsin in three straight conference tourney games. ... Michigan State committed only seven turnovers and went 1 of 11 on 3s.
Wisconsin: Davis also had three assists. ... Hepburn finished with 11 points. ... The Badgers shot 36.7% from the field and were just 7 of 24 on 3s and 12 of 21 from the free-throw line.
UP NEXT
Michigan State: Faces No. 9 Purdue in Saturday's second semifinal.
Wisconsin: Will find out who it plays and where Sunday night.
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1st Half
MIST
Spartans
24
WISC
Badgers
22
Time
Team
Play
Score
20:00
Marcus Bingham Jr. vs. Steven Crowl (Max Christie gains possession)
19:41
Marcus Bingham Jr. misses two point jump shot
19:39
Badgers defensive rebound
19:17
Johnny Davis misses two point jump shot
19:15
Marcus Bingham Jr. defensive rebound
18:58
Marcus Bingham Jr. turnover (lost ball)
18:35
Marcus Bingham Jr. blocks Steven Crowl's two point layup
18:33
Joey Hauser defensive rebound
18:13
+2
Max Christie makes two point jump shot (Tyson Walker assists)
2-0
17:57
+2
Steven Crowl makes two point layup (Chucky Hepburn assists)
2-2
17:49
Gabe Brown misses three point jump shot
17:47
Steven Crowl defensive rebound
17:33
Johnny Davis misses two point jump shot
17:31
Gabe Brown defensive rebound
17:24
Steven Crowl shooting foul (Marcus Bingham Jr. draws the foul)
17:24
Marcus Bingham Jr. misses regular free throw 1 of 2
17:24
Marcus Bingham Jr. misses regular free throw 2 of 2
17:24
Brad Davison defensive rebound
17:05
Chucky Hepburn misses two point jump shot
17:03
Jaden Akins defensive rebound
16:44
Joey Hauser misses two point layup
16:42
Badgers defensive rebound
16:43
Marcus Bingham Jr. personal foul
16:26
Johnny Davis misses two point jump shot
16:24
Chris Vogt offensive rebound
16:18
Chris Vogt misses two point layup
16:16
Julius Marble II defensive rebound
16:13
+2
Joey Hauser makes two point layup (Tyson Walker assists)
4-2
16:05
Brad Davison misses three point jump shot
16:03
Julius Marble II defensive rebound
15:58
Chucky Hepburn personal foul (Tyson Walker draws the foul)
15:58
TV timeout
15:45
Malik Hall turnover (bad pass)
15:22
+2
Chucky Hepburn makes two point jump shot
4-4
15:04
+2
A.J. Hoggard makes two point jump shot
6-4
14:53
Johnny Davis misses two point layup
14:51
Julius Marble II defensive rebound
14:47
Julius Marble II turnover (bad pass) (Tyler Wahl steals)
14:41
Malik Hall blocks Johnny Davis's two point layup
14:39
Badgers offensive rebound
14:37
Brad Davison misses two point jump shot
14:35
Ben Carlson offensive rebound
14:39
Julius Marble II personal foul (Ben Carlson draws the foul)
14:20
Johnny Davis turnover (lost ball) (A.J. Hoggard steals)
14:16
Chris Vogt shooting foul (Max Christie draws the foul)
14:16
+1
Max Christie makes regular free throw 1 of 2
7-4
14:16
+1
Max Christie makes regular free throw 2 of 2
8-4
13:51
Steven Crowl offensive foul (Julius Marble II draws the foul)
13:51
Steven Crowl turnover
13:38
+2
Julius Marble II makes two point jump shot (A.J. Hoggard assists)
10-4
13:13
Jahcobi Neath misses two point layup
13:11
Badgers offensive rebound
12:56
+2
Tyler Wahl makes two point layup
10-6
12:32
Tyler Wahl shooting foul (Marcus Bingham Jr. draws the foul)
12:32
+1
Marcus Bingham Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2
11-6
12:32
+1
Marcus Bingham Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2
12-6
12:13
Johnny Davis misses two point jump shot
12:11
Marcus Bingham Jr. defensive rebound
11:51
Marcus Bingham Jr. misses two point jump shot
11:49
Tyler Wahl defensive rebound
11:42
Gabe Brown shooting foul (Chucky Hepburn draws the foul)
11:42
TV timeout
11:42
Chucky Hepburn misses regular free throw 1 of 2
11:42
Chucky Hepburn misses regular free throw 2 of 2
11:42
Tyler Wahl offensive rebound
11:29
Brad Davison misses three point jump shot
11:27
Joey Hauser defensive rebound
11:00
Joey Hauser misses two point jump shot
10:58
Tyler Wahl defensive rebound
10:43
Joey Hauser shooting foul (Chris Vogt draws the foul)
10:40
Chris Vogt misses regular free throw 1 of 2
10:40
Chris Vogt misses regular free throw 2 of 2
10:40
Julius Marble II defensive rebound
10:20
+2
Julius Marble II makes two point jump shot
14-6
10:02
Chucky Hepburn turnover (traveling)
9:40
Tyson Walker misses two point layup
9:38
Johnny Davis defensive rebound
9:32
+2
Brad Davison makes two point layup (Johnny Davis assists)
14-8
9:16
Max Christie misses two point jump shot
9:14
Johnny Davis defensive rebound
8:55
Tyson Walker shooting foul (Brad Davison draws the foul)
8:55
+1
Brad Davison makes regular free throw 1 of 2
14-9
8:55
+1
Brad Davison makes regular free throw 2 of 2
14-10
8:49
Max Christie misses two point jump shot
8:47
Johnny Davis defensive rebound
8:33
Max Christie blocks Jordan Davis's two point layup
8:31
Malik Hall defensive rebound
8:14
+2
Julius Marble II makes two point jump shot
16-10
7:58
Brad Davison misses three point jump shot
7:56
Jaden Akins defensive rebound
7:33
Jaden Akins misses three point jump shot
7:31
Brad Davison defensive rebound
7:20
Malik Hall shooting foul (Tyler Wahl draws the foul)
7:20
TV timeout
7:20
+1
Tyler Wahl makes regular free throw 1 of 2
16-11
7:20
+1
Tyler Wahl makes regular free throw 2 of 2
16-12
7:09
Chris Vogt personal foul (Julius Marble II draws the foul)
7:00
Julius Marble II turnover (bad pass) (Johnny Davis steals)
6:51
Jordan Davis turnover (bad pass) (Julius Marble II steals)
6:33
A.J. Hoggard misses two point layup
6:31
Ben Carlson defensive rebound
6:06
+2
Brad Davison makes two point jump shot
16-14
5:44
Chris Vogt shooting foul (Julius Marble II draws the foul)
5:44
+1
Julius Marble II makes regular free throw 1 of 2
17-14
5:44
+1
Julius Marble II makes regular free throw 2 of 2
18-14
5:24
Ben Carlson misses three point jump shot
5:22
Badgers offensive rebound
5:12
Johnny Davis offensive foul (Julius Marble II draws the foul)
5:12
Johnny Davis turnover
4:51
Malik Hall misses three point jump shot
4:49
Johnny Davis defensive rebound
4:35
Johnny Davis misses three point jump shot
4:33
Marcus Bingham Jr. defensive rebound
4:24
Max Christie turnover (traveling)
4:13
Chucky Hepburn misses two point jump shot
4:11
Joey Hauser defensive rebound
3:53
Tyson Walker misses two point jump shot
3:51
Johnny Davis defensive rebound
3:39
Joey Hauser personal foul (Tyler Wahl draws the foul)
3:39
TV timeout
3:39
Tyler Wahl misses regular free throw 1 of 1
3:39
Marcus Bingham Jr. defensive rebound
3:13
Max Christie misses two point jump shot
3:11
Ben Carlson defensive rebound
2:57
Malik Hall personal foul (Brad Davison draws the foul)
2:57
+1
Brad Davison makes regular free throw 1 of 2
18-15
2:57
+1
Brad Davison makes regular free throw 2 of 2
18-16
2:40
+2
Marcus Bingham Jr. makes two point layup (Tyson Walker assists)
20-16
2:27
Jaden Akins shooting foul (Johnny Davis draws the foul)
2:27
+1
Johnny Davis makes regular free throw 1 of 2
20-17
2:27
+1
Johnny Davis makes regular free throw 2 of 2
20-18
2:02
Brad Davison personal foul (A.J. Hoggard draws the foul)
2:02
+1
A.J. Hoggard makes regular free throw 1 of 2
21-18
2:02
+1
A.J. Hoggard makes regular free throw 2 of 2
22-18
1:55
Johnny Davis misses three point jump shot
1:53
Tyler Wahl offensive rebound
1:47
A.J. Hoggard blocks Ben Carlson's two point layup
1:45
Badgers offensive rebound
1:38
+2
Brad Davison makes two point jump shot
22-20
1:15
Ben Carlson personal foul (Marcus Bingham Jr. draws the foul)
1:15
+1
Marcus Bingham Jr. makes regular free throw 1 of 2
23-20
1:15
+1
Marcus Bingham Jr. makes regular free throw 2 of 2
24-20
1:06
+2
Johnny Davis makes two point layup
24-22
1:06
Jaden Akins shooting foul (Johnny Davis draws the foul)