Michigan State shakes off rust with 77-58 win over Oakland at Little Caesars Arena

Connor Earegood, The Detroit News on Dec 17, 2024

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

DETROIT — As Oakland’s Greg Kampe and Michigan State’s Tom Izzo rocked Grinch-themed ugly sweaters to Tuesday’s neutral site men’s basketball game at Little Caesars Arena, the wardrobe choice was a foreshadow to what the game would become.

Shaking off a sloppy start with turnovers, No. 20 Michigan State (9-2) finished with a 77-58 blowout win over Oakland while shaking off the rust of a recent 10-day break.

Twelve different Spartans scored in the game, with forward Xavier Booker’s career-high 18-point game leading the way. Guard Jaden Akins finished with 16 points while forward Jaxon Kohler scored 14. Michigan State finished the game with a 51-30 edge in rebounds, with Kohler leading with 10 for a double-double.

Michigan State came out playing like one would expect of a team that hadn’t played in more than a week. It lacked some finish at the rim and gave up four offensive rebounds in the first six minutes. Oakland scored no points off these, however, in part thanks to four blocks by the Spartans, including a pair by forward Kohler. This allowed Michigan State to build a lead early on, which it struggled to stretch.

Oakland (3-6) took control and with it a brief 19-18 lead about 12 minutes in, off one of forward DQ Cole’s five 3s in the first half. Cole ended the game with 17 points. But Michigan State responded right back. The problem was that the Spartans continued to mess up the details, turning the ball over on inbounds, misfiring pass attempts and allowing too many good outside shots.

Michigan State ended the first half up 31-30, a single point that held the weight of all its mistakes in the first 20 minutes.

Coming out in the second half, the Spartans put together a cleaner body of work that would’ve made the heart of the Grinch on Izzo’s sweater grow three sizes. The Spartans came out hitting shots and getting defensive stops, taking a 10-point lead four minutes into the half as guard Jase Richardson nailed a 3.

But Oakland battled back, with guard Malcolm Christie hitting a couple of tough 3s to bring the score closer en route to a 15-point night. But the Spartans kept finding shots. With 9:07 left, a Jaden Akins finger roll brought the lead to 54-42 as a raucous crowd drowned out the whistles of a timeout.

The MSU fans kept having reason to cheer, as a personal seven-point run by Booker helped put the game on ice. The Spartans took a 16-point lead into the final media timeout, then stretched it to the final 19-point margin.

The Spartans’ win wasn’t pretty, but it knocked off the rust after an extended break. Michigan State will take on Florida Atlantic at Breslin Center this Saturday.

____