Five Takeaways: Joey Hauser lifts Michigan State past Davidson in NCAA first round
Michigan State's Joey Hauser tied a career-high with 27 points, and carried the Spartans to a 74-73 win over Davidson in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
MSU advances to the Round of 32 and a matchup with Duke, as legendary coaches Tom Izzo and Mike Krzyzewski will meet for the 16th and final time in their illustrious careers. Krzyzewski will retire at the end of Duke's season.
The Spartans and Wildcats traded jabs early, with MSU building a slight, 15-14 lead at the under-12 timeout in the first half. That set the tone for what would be a toe-to-toe bout in the opening 20 minutes.
Michigan State briefly fell behind by three points, 29-26, but went on a 6-0 run to flip the script and take the lead. The Spartans then went scoreless for the final three minutes of the half and took a 32-31 lead into the locker room.
It was more of the same midway through the second half. Michigan State stretched their lead to four points, but the Wildcats punched back with a 7-0 run to take a 52-49 lead with 9:27 left in the game.
Davidson's lead grew to five points, 56-51, but it was the Spartans turn to punch back. Powered by back-to-back triples from Joey Hauser and Gabe Brown, MSU went on an 10-0 run to retake the lead.
The Spartans never gave the lead back, and Michigan State held off the Wildcats in the final minutes.
1. Joey Hauser carries the Spartans to Round of 32
Joey Hauser was easily Michigan State's best player in the first half. The redshirt senior had a size mismatch in the post, and used it to his advantage, scoring 12 points on 5-for-5 shooting in the first 20 minutes. Hauser also went 2-for-2 from three-point range, and had three rebounds, an assist and a steal in the first frame.
The transfer from Marquette wasn't done yet, either. Hauser picked up right where he left off in the second half, scoring 15 more points to finish with 27 points on a red-hot 9-of-12 shooting performance. The senior went 4-for-6 from the three-point line for the game, and had eight rebounds, two assists and a steal. Quite simply, this was Joey Hauser's best performance in a Michigan State uniform.
2. AJ Hoggard comes alive in crunch time
AJ Hoggard was having a forgetful performance through the first 30 minutes of play in this one, but the sophomore turned it on when Michigan State needed it most. Hoggard came alive down the stretch to pull the Spartans out of a scoring slump, and spark the 10-0 run that gave MSU the lead for good. The sophomore finished with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting and added two assists and three rebounds. This was far from Hoggard's best performance, but he came up big when Michigan State really needed it.
3. Michigan State bench struggles
Michigan State's bench production has been one of the most consistent things about this team all season. On a couple of occasions, the Spartans' bench outscored the starters. But tonight against Davidson, Michigan State's bench was no where to be found in the first half. The Spartan reserves were held to two points on 1-of-8 shooting in the first 20 minutes, as Julius Marble had early foul trouble and Malik Hall struggled to get going.
MSU's reserves picked it up a bit after halftime, finishing with 11 points on the night, but shot only 5-for-16 from the floor. Hall finished 1-of-5 for two points. Marble had 5 points on 2-of-3 shooting. Walker was clearly limited with the sprained ankle, but he played pretty well and finished with six points, two rebounds and three assists with zero turnovers. Walker also sank two free throws to finish off Davidson.
4. Foster Loyer held in check
It was a tough reunion with for Davidson's Foster Loyer, who played against Michigan State for the first time since transferring from East Lansing last offseason. Loyer finished with 12 points, but shot just 3-of-9 from the floor and 1-of-5 from beyond the three-point line. The junior went 5-for-5 from the free throw line, and added six rebounds and four assists.
As a whole, Davidson lived up to its reputation as one of the most efficient offensive teams in the country. The Wildcats shot 47.5 percent from the floor, and 40 percent (10-of-25) from three-point range, even with some desperation attempts in the final minutes of the game. Davidson was a tough team to defend, but Michigan State got just enough stops to come out on top.
5. On to the Round of 32
This is the matchup that most wanted to see in the NCAA Tournament's second round when the bracket was revealed on 'Selection Sunday'. Michigan State's Tom Izzo and Duke's Mike Krzyzewski will meet for the 16th and final time in their careers when the Spartans battle the Blue Devils.
Izzo is 3-12 against Coach K in the previous 15 games between the coaches, but Michigan State has won two of the past three against Duke, including an Elite Eight matchup in 2019. The Blue Devils, a 2-seed in the West region, will be a difficult challenge for the Spartans on Sunday, but what else can you expect from the month of March?
