Michigan State suffers shocking second-round NCAA Tournament loss to Syracuse MLive
The Spartans fell to Syracuse, 55-53, in a second-round NCAA Tournament game at Little Caesars Arena as a horrific shooting afternoon made for a shocking end to one of the most talented teams in program history.
Men’s basketball ousted by Syracuse, fails to advance to Sweet 16 The State News
Even in front of a near capacity crowd of 20,360 at Little Caesars Arena, third-seeded MSU (30-5) missed open looks and key shots from the free-throw line as No. 11 Syracuse (23-13) survived and advanced to the Sweet 16, taking a 55-53 defensive grudge match against the Spartans on Sunday.
Michigan State stifled, upset 55-53 by Syracuse in NCAA tournament Detroit Free Press
Miles Bridges could not make a shot. Neither could Joshua Langford or Cassius Winston. With every miss, Michigan State’s dream of a national championship came closer to crashing to a halt against Syracuse’s zone defense. And then Winston’s last-gasp, half-court heave smacked off the glass, wide left. Season over.
Couch: 3 quick takes on Michigan State’s 55-53 NCAA tournament loss to Syracuse
Lansing State Journal columnist Graham Couch gives his initial thoughts on the Spartans’ NCAA tournament loss to Syracuse on Sunday at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
Season-worst shooting sends MSU home early again The Detroit News
The Spartans entered the NCAA Tournament as a 3-seed, but were the pick of many to make it all the way to San Antonio and bring home their third national championship and second under Izzo.
Spartans lose slugfest to Syracuse, ending season Impact Sports
The No. 3 seed Spartans lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament Sunday, as Syracuse swallowed up the Spartans with a zone defense for the ages. The No. 11 seed Orange took a lead late in the second half and didn’t relinquish it, emerging victorious, 55-53, at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena in front of a green and white crowd.
No. 3 Michigan State Falls to No. 11 Syracuse in NCAA Second Round, 55-53 MSUSpartans.com
Third-seeded Michigan State fell to No. 11 seed Syracuse, 55-53, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Little Caesars Arena Sunday afternoon. Cassius Winston scored 15 points to lead MSU, but the Spartans couldn’t overcome their 26-percent shooting from the field as the Orange didn’t allow a made basket in the final 5:41 of the game. Syracuse closed the game on a 12-5 run to advance to the Sweet 16.
Michigan State wins rebounding battle against Syracuse, but loses game Detroit Free Press
In one sense Tom Izzo’s big lineup worked during the Spartans 55-53 loss to Syracuse Sunday afternoon in the Midwest regional at Little Caesars Arena. Freshman reserve Xavier Tillman pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds. Reserve senior Ben Carter played 23 minutes, at first because of Jaren Jackson Jr. foul trouble, then because of his veteran presence passing against the Syracuse zone. He scored two points and had two rebounds.
Miles Bridges, Jaren Jackson Jr., Nick Ward mum on NBA futures MLive.com
The questions came far sooner than they expected, and Miles Bridges, Jaren Jackson, and Nick Ward didn’t have answers for them. All three Michigan State players didn’t say if they will leave Michigan State and enter the NBA Draft following the Spartans second-round tournament upset loss to Syracuse.
Horrific shooting day undoes Michigan State in NCAA Tournament loss to Syracuse MLive
In a sullen postgame locker room, Michigan State players were left with 29 what-ifs. The Spartans missed 29 3-point attempts in their 55-53 NCAA Tournament loss to Syracuse, marking a horrific outside shooting performance in the team’s biggest game of the year.
Tom Izzo will be back: ‘I took too many bullets’ Detroit News
“I never ever planned on going anywhere,” Izzo said after the game. “From the first rumors … I don’t plan on going anywhere. I’ve got a job to do and I’ve never run from anything in my life. Nothing. I don’t plan on starting now. So I’ll be here. I took too many bullets this year not to be here. So I’ll be here and we’ll be back knocking on the door to win a championship, I’m gonna make damn sure of that. I’m gonna get the help of my people, my team, my support and hopefully, I’ll do a better job handling all the other things.”
Miles Bridges stunned by loss, says he let teammates down MLive
Miles Bridges struggled to digest what was displayed on the scoreboard. Syracuse 55, Michigan State 53. “I really just couldn’t believe that we had lost,” the Michigan State sophomore forward said. “I thought we had the best shot to win a national championship. Unfortunately, we didn’t do that. It’s probably the saddest I’ve ever been in my life.”
Abrupt ending hard to swallow for Spartan seniors Impact Sports
It wasn’t supposed to end this way. Not for anybody. The fans, the players, the senior class on this Michigan State roster. Going into Sunday afternoon’s clash against No. 11-seeded Syracuse, Gavin Schilling, Ben Carter and Lourawls “Tum Tum” Nairn Jr. weren’t anticipating walking off the court for the final time in their collegiate careers.
Couch: Michigan State, it turns out, never became the team we thought it might be Lansing State Journal
Of all the years that have felt like Tom Izzo’s next best chance at a second national championship, this one, by the end, didn’t really. Sunday’s 55-53 loss to Syracuse in the second round of the NCAA tournament will sting for a while because it’s the end — of Miles Bridges, of Jaren Jackson Jr., of Tum Tum Nairn, of a group of kids that elevated the program’s culture and made coming to work every day worth it for Izzo and Co.