Michigan State University
Oakland
Spartans Overwhelm Oakland, 78-50
12/19/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec 19, 2001
By LARRY LAGE
AP Sports Writer
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Michigan State learned a lesson without losing.
The 17th-ranked Spartans showed they can play with great intensity, even if the opponent is not ranked or a rival.
Marcus Taylor had 17 points and four assists as No. 17 Michigan State beat Oakland 78-50 Wednesday night to extend the nation's longest home winning streak to 52 games.
Michigan State coach Tom Izzo was angry about the effort the Spartans showed in their 20-point victory Monday over North Carolina Asheville, which followed a 74-60 win over Arizona.
Izzo vowed to work his team hard on Tuesday when he would normally would have a lighter practice with two games in three days. He was pleased with how his young team responded.
"I do think they showed some maturity," Izzo said. "I know there's a human element in that you can't be up every night.
"But if you're trying to win championships, you can't lose or falter very often, so you better get use to it. If we're going to win a championship or compete in the NCAA tournament, we have to learn how to get back up, get back up and get back up."
Taylor said Izzo didn't have to do a lot of screaming to get his point across.
"Everybody knew that we didn't play with a lot of mental focus in the last game," Taylor said. "Coach knew it and we knew it. We know that when the Big Ten season rolls around, we're going to have to be mentally and physically ready to play every game."
The Spartans (8-3) scored the first eight points against the Golden Grizzlies (5-7), and turned the game into a rout with an 11-0 run to open the second half.
Michigan State reserve Chris Hill scored 12 points, Kelvin Torbert had 12 points and four assists, and Adam Wolfe added 10 points.
Reserve Brad Buddenborg led Oakland with 14 points.
Michigan State came out inspired and selfless in both halves.
The Spartans didn't allow Oakland to score for more than three minutes, and five different players had the first five baskets. Michigan State led 33-17 at halftime.
Four different Spartans contributed to the 10-0 run to begin the second half, while they held Oakland scoreless for more than four minutes. Two others helped pad the lead to 56-22 with 13:07 left to play. Michigan State's lead hovered around 30 points for the rest of the game.
Four Spartans had three or four assists.
"Assists can be contagious," Izzo said.
The Spartans outrebounded Oakland 51-24 and limited it to 30.2 percent shooting. Oakland coach Greg Kampe wasn't happy.
"I thought we were going to win," Kampe said. "You may laugh at me, but I think we were good enough to win. You may think I'm crazy, but this is as disappointed as I've ever been.
"I'm very angry and disappointed in my team."
Michigan State finishes its non-conference schedule, which includes five ranked opponents, against Seton Hall on Saturday at home and No. 13 Stanford on Dec. 29 at the Oakland Arena.
The Spartans have fared relatively well this year after losing seven players that led last season's team to a third consecutive Final Four and a fourth straight Big Ten title.
"If I were to look at it from the outside, I'd probably feel good about where we're going," Izzo said. "But as I look at it from the inside, it looks like we have a lot of work to do.
"I think we're getting to the point where we're kind of wondering and they're wondering, how good can this team be? I think we're going to learn a lot Saturday, with it being our fourth game in eight days and against a quality opponent in Seton Hall. By Saturday night, I'll know where this team is and maybe more important, where it can go."
