Michigan State University Athletics
MSU Falls Short In Late Comeback Against Italy
8/29/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Aug. 29, 2015
Boxscore
Michigan State pulled within five points of the Italian Senior National Team midway through the fourth quarter, but the host team closed the contest on a 20-4 run over the final five minutes for a 90-69 win Saturday at PalaTrieste in Trieste, Italy. Denzel Valentine led MSU with 23 points while Bryn Forbes added 17 for the Spartans.
"We played so much better than we did yesterday, and I think that this is a better team," said head coach Tom Izzo. "We did play better, but we lost by a point or two more than we did last night. The score was not indicative of the game. For 35 minutes, that was a pretty good game. I thought we did a lot of better things. (Bryn) Forbes played a lot better in the second half, (Gavin) Schilling played better and (Matt) Costello bounced back and played better. We also got a lot out of Colby (Wollenman) and Kenny (Goins), but we still have some issues with guys that did not play as well."
The game was the second in a three-day tournament featuring MSU along with the Italian, Georgian and Russian Senior National Teams. The three countries are using the tournament as a tune-up for Eurobasket 2015, which will be held in September to determine the European qualifiers for the 2016 Summer Olympics. Michigan State will face Georgia Sunday at 6 p.m. local time (Noon ET) in the final game of the tournament.
Forbes opened the scoring with a 3-pointer, but Marco Belinelli, who will play in his ninth NBA season this year, answered with a 3-pointer of his own. Valentine followed with a basket, but a 5-0 run gave the Italians the lead for good. Italy pushed its lead out to 19-10, but back-to-back 3-pointers from Valentine pulled MSU within three at 19-16. Italy, however, closed out the quarter on a 7-0 spurt to take a 26-16 lead. Valentine had 10 of MSU's 16 first-quarter points.
In the second quarter, Italy increased its lead to 40-25, but the Spartans slowly fought their way back. A 9-2 run, featuring four points from Matt Costello, pulled MSU within eight points at 42-34. Italy hit two late free throws to take a 44-34 halftime lead. For the half, MSU shot .519 from the field, including .455 from 3-point range, while Italy shot .452 from the field and .750 from behind the arc.
MSU cut its deficit to eight points early in the third quarter (50-42), but the Italian squad slowly pulled away for a 65-51 advantage at the end of three quarters. Forbes kept the Spartans in the contest with eight points in the third.
"We just need to put all four quarters together," said Valentine. "We showed flashes, and we were down five at one point in the fourth quarter but just lost focus a little bit. It is a national team that had NBA players, and those guys are good. We can't complain about the effort. We just need to come out and give it our all."
Forbes hit two threes early in the fourth quarter sandwiched around an Italian 3-pointer to open the fourth quarter on a 12-3 run, pulling MSU within five points at 68-63. With the score at 70-65 and just 5:03 remaining Italy called timeout. Belinelli hit a 3-pointer coming out of the break, and Daniel Hacket, a member of the 2009 USC squad that lost to MSU in the NCAA Tournament followed with another three. And after one MSU free throw, Pietro Aradori hit a third three with a Spartan hand in his face. Hacket followed with two free throws, and in the span of less than two minutes, Italy had taken control with an 11-1 run. Overall, they closed on a 20-4 run to win 90-69.
"We had a couple of moments where we didn't close out on a free throw and they got a play," Izzo said. "We didn't sprint back, and they get a three-point play. Twenty-three turnovers is ridiculous, but it is hard when you are trying to play 12 guys, and we are trying to figure out who is who. And remember, we do not have our second best player right now, and that is going to make a difference too because we have had to play more inexperienced guys."
For the game, MSU shot .443, including .476 from 3-point range. Italy shot .452 from the field and .500 from behind the arc. The Spartans out-rebounded the taller Italian squad, 39-33, but were plagued by 23 turnovers. Gavin Schilling grabbed a team-high eight rebounds, and Matt Costello added seven. Valentine led the Spartans with five assists.
"We are getting back to our roots a little bit," said Izzo. "Gavin (Schilling) did a great job. Kenny (Goins) and Colby (Wollenman) did a good job. We made some progress there, rebounding the ball. Last night, we did not do as good of a job. We are fouling too much, making too many turnovers, and as you say, in critical times not making great plays. But we are going to get better."
In addition to Belinelli, Danilo Gallinari, who will be playing in his eighth NBA season where he is currently a teammate of former Spartan Gary Harris with the Denver Nuggets, also played in the contest. However, he saw just 4:21 of action after receiving a technical foul. Belinelli finished with a game-high 25 points and Achille Polonara added 17.
