Photo: Dale Young ~ USA TODAY Sports
EAST LANSING, Dec. 30, 2023 ~ The Michigan State Spartans defeated the Indiana State Sycamores 87-75 at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.
The game was the 1979 National Championship rematch with NBA Hall of Famers Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Larry Bird. “Magic” Johnson played at Michigan State and Larry Bird played at Indiana State at that time.
The Spartans had a slight edge throughout the first half. Sycamores Isaiah Swope kept Indiana State in the game with 14 points in the first half. The Spartans had four scorers in double digits, including Tyson Walker, Jaden Akins, A.J. Hoggard, and Malik Hall. By the end of the first half, Michigan State sat at a 10-point lead.
Indiana State came out hot at the beginning of the second half. About five minutes into the second half, the Sycamores tied up the score and maintained the lead until about nine minutes remaining in the game. Swope continued to lead Indiana State as he was the game’s leading scorer with 26 points.
However, Swope’s effort wasn’t enough as Spartans’ Walker and Hall combined for 25 points in the second half. The Spartans were able to outlast the Sycamores as they secured a 13-point lead in the game’s closing minutes. Hall went an impressive 5/6 from the field in the second half and Walker went 10/10 from the free throw line.
SOCIAL MEDIA:
"I hope Earvin and Larry are proud of both schools." 🎞 pic.twitter.com/Mj9p4Q1RAC
— Michigan State Men's Basketball (@MSU_Basketball) December 31, 2023
(CONTINUED) Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo offered post-game comments on how “Magic” Johnson and Larry Bird should view each of their teams:
“I think both those guys should be proud of both those schools. What we’ve done, I think Earvin [Johnson] is proud. He was here just two weeks ago, and that means a lot to me. But I think Larry [Bird] should be proud of where Indiana State is going because this [Indiana State] is a good basketball team. I don’t want to jinx them [Indiana State]. I don’t want to put any pressure on them, but they’re as good as any team we’ve played and we’ve played some pretty good teams.”
Michigan State has another Big Ten Conference matchup to begin the new year against Penn State home at the Breslin Center on January 4. Coverage starts at 6 p.m. on 760 WJR.
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