Neitzel Torches Buckeyes

Michigan State bounced back from a stinging defeat to OSU only a few days prior to bury the Buckeyes 67-60, knocking the Scarlet and Gray out of the Big Ten Tournament.

Michigan State’s best player seems to be peaking at just the right time.

Senior guard Drew Neitzel scored a season-high 28 points in the Spartans 67-60 victory over Ohio State in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament.

Neitzel capped off his performance, and sealed the game, hitting a decisive 3-pointer to double MSU’s lead to six at 61-55 with only 1:20 left in the game. For the afternoon, Neitzel shot 6-12 from downtown, 9-17 overall and added five rebounds to the Spartan cause.

Raymar Morgan, who shot an uncharacteristically poor 3-14 from the field, and Kalin Lucas both scored eight for MSU, the team’s next leading scorers.

Goran Suton pulled down nine rebounds, Drew Naymick seven, and the Spartan starting five combined for 33 of the team’s 34 rebounds overall.

With the game tied at 30 after 20 minutes of play, OSU went ahead by two early in the second half, and although they quickly lost the lead, the Spartans never quite pulled away.

MSU relied on their defense as the game wore on, holding the Buckeyes to only two points for over four minutes until Othello Hunter laid one in with 3:32 to go in the game.

The Green and White will face Wisconsin in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament tomorrow at 1:40 p.m.

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