'Team effort' helps Michigan State upend Marquette, earn berth in Sweet Sixteen

Columbus, Ohio — It was in the final minute on Sunday when it all started to hit Tyson Walker.

The Michigan State senior was on fire, scoring nine points in the final three minutes as No. 7 Michigan State was battling No. 2 Marquette in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament at Nationwide Arena.

BOX SCORE: Michigan State 69, Marquette 60

It was at that moment Walker glanced to the crowd and spotted his parents.

“When I got fouled the last time I looked up at my dad and he was jumping around,” Walker said. “My dad and my mom. That’s when I really recognized, yeah, we did it.”

They did, indeed, as the Spartans knocked off the Golden Eagles, 69-60, to advance to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2019 and the 15^th time under coach Tom Izzo. Michigan State (21-12) will take on No. 3 Kansas State (25-9) on Thursday at Madison Square Garden in New York. Tipoff is at 6:30 p.m.

It was all possible thanks to Walker and a host of his teammates.

Walker scored 17 of his 23 points in the second half, but he was just one spoke in the wheel. Joey Hauser, facing his former team, scored 14 and hit a massive 3-pointer in the final minutes while grabbing 10 rebounds. A.J. Hoggard was outstanding most of the game, scoring 13 and overcoming an early mistake just 10 seconds into the game. Mady Sissoko and Carson Cooper scrapped in the middle with Sissoko scoring eight and grabbing 10 rebounds. And Malik Hall scored four and had five rebounds, but his offensive rebound with 1:28 to play might have sealed the victory.

“It was definitely a team effort,” Hoggard said. “A lot of guys didn’t show up in the stat sheet scoring points but did a lot of other things well. From the coaches all the way down to the managers, they did a good job preparing us for this game with the prep and the scout.

“Hats go off to everyone on the team and everyone being dialed in, and then shout out to Joey and Tyson for making big plays down the stretch.”

Oliver-Maxence Prosper scored 16 to lead Marquette (29-7) as Kam Jones added 14 and Oso Ighodaro chipped in 10 for the Golden Eagles.

“I thought they played with great aggressiveness, particularly early in the game and at the very end of the game,” Marquette coach Shaka Smart said of Michigan State. “And those two the stretches were the difference in the outcome of the game.

“I thought our guys showed incredible character and fight to bring us back from being down 13 early to having a three-point lead in the first round of the second half. Offensively just not one of our best games. I think Michigan State's aggressiveness, their physicality affected us. It was a lot of plays we'd love to have back. But when you're in the NCAA Tournament you can't get plays back, and it's a tough pill to swallow for us.”

Michigan State came out firing, overcoming a turnover in the first 10 seconds to score 11 straight points and jump to an 11-2 lead just four minutes into the game.

That lead kept growing and after Hauser hit a jumper then nailed two straight free throws, the Spartans had an 18-5 lead with 12:24 left in the first half.

The Marquette offense started to come to life from there and got within eight at 21-13, but Michigan State, pushing the lead to 27-15 on a lob pass from Malik Hall to Carson Cooper. The Golden Eagles, however, picked up the full-court defensive pressure and it bothered the Spartans as a 6-0 run got them within 27-21.

Michigan State managed to get the lead back to nine at 31-22, but Marquette scored seven in a row with a pair of 3-pointers before Jaden Akins closed the scoring with a jumper in the lane, give the Spartans a 33-28 lead at halftime.

“Tonight, Michigan State deserves credit,” Smart said. “They came at us with aggressiveness. We got off to a tough start. I thought we expended a lot of energy digging out of that hole. Maybe that impacted our energy down the stretch.”

Marquette was the team off to the quick start in the second half as the Golden Eagles hit two 3-pointers in the first minute and scored the first eight points of the half to take a 34-33 lead, their first since it was 2-0.

Michigan State managed to get the lead back at 40-39, but another 3-pointer from David Joplin gave Marquette a 42-40 lead with 12:09 to play as Michigan State couldn’t buy a shot, going 2-for-10 in the second half to that point.

The Spartans clawed back, though, forcing turnovers and building a 52-45 lead after a pair of Walker free throws with 6:33 to play. But the Golden Eagles got the next six to pull within one. After Hoggard split a pair of free throws, Hauser nailed a three from the corner.

“Yeah, it was a big shot,” Hauser said. “A.J. made a play and found me there. It felt good to see one go in finally and it was what we needed there. I think it might have given us a five-point lead, whatever it was, but it was a timely shot.”

Jones answered, however, at the other end to pull Marquette within 56-54 with 4:13 to play. After a Marquette free throw, Michigan State got buckets from Walker and Hoggard to push the lead to 60-55 with 2:20 to play

Walker then hit a jumper, made two free throws then got a steal and a dunk to push the lad to 66-55 before a Tyler Kolek 3-pointer. But the Spartans put the game away at the free-throw line.

“I think this whole year I've been doing a good job just not taking chances with my passes, staying under control,” Walker said. “And down the stretch, Joey, everybody just said to give me the ball at key times and I made big plays.”

And now Michigan State moves on as the 7-seed, something it’s familiar with. In 2015, as the 7-seed, Michigan State advanced all the way to the Final Four after beating No. 2 Virginia in the second round. Only time will tell if a similar journey is taking place, but for one day, the Spartans were happy to relish in their success.

“We beat a good team,” Izzo said. “But I am so proud of these guys for withstanding that, because that was — I’ve been in Elite Eight games; I've been in Final Four — that was as intense and tough a game as I've been in my career.”

mcharboneau@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @mattcharboneau