Indiana Basketball: Hoosiers get big win in thriller over Michigan State

It wasn’t the most glamorous performance, but Indiana Basketball did enough to pull off a thrilling home victory against No. 11 Michigan State.

The Hoosiers came out of the gates on fire, jumping out to a 25-10 lead halfway through the first half, and maintained the lead for the majority of the game, ultimately taking down No. 11 Michigan State 67-63.

This tremendous lead was gained through fantastic effort and converting on easy shot close to the rim. Indiana began the game 11-of-19 and it seemed as if every 50/50 ball wound up in a Hoosiers’ clutches through sheer willpower.

Cassius Winston and company struggled to shoot the ball effectively, only hitting on 7 of their first 21 shots. This was in large part to stifling team defense played by Indiana. It was only a matter of time before they began hitting their shots, however, and two straight threes by Aaron Henry, who had 12 points on the night, helped propel Michigan State to a comeback.

By the 4:54 mark, Michigan State brought Indiana’s lead to three, only trailing 27-24. While the shots eventually falling was inevitable, it was another scoring drought by Indiana that kept the Spartans afloat.

A swing in the game came when Race Thompson fell to the ground directly on his tailbone as he was fouled by Xavier Tillman on a drive. Although his stats weren’t out of this world, Thompson was Indiana’s best player in the first half, scrapping for rebounds and playing fantastic defense. Thompson walked off the court gingerly and would not return.

Indiana went to the locker room at halftime off of a deadeye three-pointer by Al Durham, extending the lead 37-30.

Despite only finishing the first half with four points, Cassius Winston eventually got to cooking. He made his first three shots of the second half, all of them threes, and finished the game with a game-high 17 points. A cold spell on offense by Indiana allowed Michigan State to take a 51-48 lead at the 11:00 minute mark of the second half.

From that point on, it became a back-and-forth battle to win the game. Neither team’s lead eclipsed three points until 0.6 seconds remained in the game. This bucket-trading final ten minutes was capped off by a clutch pass by Rob Phinisee to Al Durham, who knocked down a three to put the Hoosiers up 63-60 with 1:52 to go.

Michigan State had a chance to tie the game at 65 with five seconds remaining but Trayce Jackson-Davis, who finished with 12 points, switched onto Cassius Winston and blocked Winston from behind. Xavier Tillman had a premier chance for a putback, but the easy shot careened off the rim and wound up in the hands of Jerome Hunter, sealing the game.

Joey Brunk was huge all game for the Hoosiers and finished with a team-high 14 points and six rebounds. Al Durham chipped in 11 points as well.

This game ended in an eerily similar way as the last game played versus Michigan State at Assembly Hall. It is a great win for the Hoosiers and should give them an ample confidence boost as they continue to trudge through the Big Ten conference slate.