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Michigan
State
guard
Tyson
Walker
(2)
shoots
on
Southern
California
forward
Kobe
Johnson
(0) in
the
second
half of
a
first-round
college
basketball
game in
the NCAA
Tournament
Friday,
March
17,
2023, in
Columbus,
Ohio.
(AP
Photo/Paul
Sancya) |
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Southern
California
guard
Tre
White
(22)
walks
off the
court
following
a
first-round
college
basketball
game
against
Michigan
State in
the
men's
NCAA
Tournament
in
Columbus,
Ohio,
Friday,
March
17,
2023.
Michigan
State
defeated
Southern
California
72-62.
(AP
Photo/Michael
Conroy) |
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Michigan
State
muscles
past USC
72-62 in
March
Madness
By
TOM
WITHERS
apnews.com/sports
COLUMBUS,
Ohio -
Joey
Hauser
scored
17
points
and No.
7 seed
Michigan
State
clamped
down
defensively
on No.
10 seed
Southern
California
in the
second
half on
Thursday
for a
72-62
win in
the
first
round of
the NCAA
Tournament’s
East
Region.
Coach
Tom
Izzo’s
Spartans
(20-12)
will
face the
winner
of the
Vermont-Marquette
matchup
on
Sunday
for a
spot in
the
Sweet
16.
Marquette
coach
Shaka
Smart
sat on
press
row for
part of
the
second
half to
get a
closer
look at
what
could be
his next
opponent.
Smart
watched
as
Michigan
State
ramped
up its
defensive
intensity
after
halftime
to
muzzle
the
streaky
Trojans
(22-11),
who were
knocked
out in
the
tournament’s
first
round
for the
second
straight
year.
Tyson
Walker
and
Jaden
Akins
added 12
points
apiece
for
Michigan
State,
which
held USC
to 34%
shooting
in the
second
half. It
felt
like
every
possession
was a
challenge
for the
Trojans,
who only
stayed
within
range
with
some
late
3-pointers
and some
atrocious
free-throw
shooting
by
Michigan
State.
The
Spartans
missed
six
straight
from the
line
during
one
stretch
while
trying
to close
it out
and
finished
15 of 25
overall.
Joshua
Morgan
scored
14 and
Kobe
Johnson
13 to
lead
USC.
Michigan
State,
appearing
in its
25th
straight
tournament
under
Izzo,
will
move on
in what
has been
a unique
and
challenging
season
for the
Spartans.
The team
became
the face
of a
grief-stricken
school
after a
gunman
killed
three
students
and
injured
five
others
in a
campus
shooting
on Feb.
13.
Playing
in Big
Ten
country,
and
backed
by a
crowd
wearing
even
more
green on
St.
Patrick’s
Day, the
Spartans
took
control
in the
second
half.
A.J.
Hoggard’s
steal
and
layup
put
Michigan
State
ahead
58-49.
USC
struggled
to get
any good
looks at
the
basket
and fell
into a
bigger
hole
when
Hauser
and
Jaden
Akins
buried
consecutive
3-pointers
as
Michigan
State’s
lead
swelled
to 66-51
with
4:23
left.
Johnson
knocked
down two
3s to
pull USC
within
nine,
but the
Trojans
couldn’t
get any
closer.
TWO
TOMS
Izzo
showed
his
soft,
nurturing
side,
especially
when he
helped
his team
and the
school
cope
following
the
tragedy.
However,
he
didn’t
like
being
described
as a
“teddy
bear.”
And
while
he’s not
as fiery
these
days,
the
68-year-old
is still
demanding
of his
players.
“I
look in
the
mirror a
lot,” he
said,
“and
sometimes
I don’t
like
what I
see in
me. And
I let
the
players
know
that. So
maybe
the
terror
side
will
come out
again. I
had a
parent
tell me
something
two days
ago that
I really
enjoyed:
‘Coach
my kid,
the hell
with the
outside
stuff.
Coach my
kid.’
“So
I’m
coaching
them. So
hopefully
I bring
that
with me
this
weekend
and
hopefully
our team
responds.”
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