Michigan State Falls to Maryland, 68-57, in Big Ten Quarterfinals

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State took an early 12-point lead in the first half, but Maryland held a 4-point lead at halftime and the Spartans struggled early in the second half en route to a 68-57 loss to the Terrapins in the Big Ten Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Sophomore forward Malik Hall (Aurora, Ill./Sunrise Christian Academy [Kan.]) scored a career-high 19 points, grabbed six rebounds, had two assists and three steals to lead the Spartans, while junior forward Aaron Henry (Indianapolis, Ind./Ben Davis) added 12 points, nine rebounds and three steals.

Records
Michigan State falls to 15-12 overall, while Maryland improves to 16-12.

Recap

Michigan State trailed by just four points, 34-30, starting the second half, but the Spartans missed their first eight shots of the second half as Maryland extended its lead to 42-30 on a layup from Eric Ayala.
A layup from freshman guard A.J. Hoggard (Coatesville, Pa./Huntington Prep [W.Va.]) ended the skid for MSU and a dunk from junior forward Marcus Bingham Jr. (Grand Rapids, Mich./GR Catholic Central) made it 42-34, but Darryl Morsell hit two-straight baskets and pushed the lead to 13 points, 47-34, with 11:30 to play.
That was the start of a 13-3 run for the Terrapins as a three-point play from Aaron Wiggins gave the Terps a 55-37 lead with 8:16 left.
Maryland took its biggest lead, 59-40, on a pair of free throws from Ayala with 7:19 in the game.
Michigan State had gotten off to a quick start, scoring eight-straight points and taking a 12-4 lead after a 3-pointer from Hall just under five minutes into the game.
The Spartans extended their run to 13-2 when a layup from Bingham gave MSU a 17-8 lead and forced Maryland to call a timeout.
The Spartans took their biggest lead of the game, 23-11, on a hook shot from redshirt junior forward Joey Hauser (Stevens Point, Wis./Stevens Point) with 10:21 to play
Maryland out-scored MSU, 23-7, over the remainder of the half, including 10 points from the free throw line, and took a 34-30 lead when Ayala hit a 3-pointer with one second left.

Key Stats

Maryland took advantage of 18 Michigan State turnovers, out-scoring the Spartans, 27-2, in points off turnovers.
Maryland out-rebounded Michigan State, 37-35, and had 12 second-chance points.
Maryland hit 71.4 percent of its free throws (20-of-28), including 93.8 percent (15-of-16) in the first half.
Michigan State shot just 38.2 percent from the floor (14-of-33).
The Spartans missed their last three (and committed five turnovers) of the first half and the first eight of the second half, a stretch of 11:57 without a field goal as a 26-18 lead with 5:40 left in the first half became a 42-30 deficit with 14:35 remaining in the game.

Notes

Michigan State now has an all-time record of 32-17 in the Big Ten Tournament.
MSU is 2-1 all-time against Maryland in the Big Ten Tournament.
Malik Hall scored a career-high 19 points, his fifth game in double figures this season.
Aaron Henry finished with 12 points, his 25th game in double figures this season.

Up Next
Michigan State awaits the selection show for the 2021 NCAA Tournament on Sunday, March 14 at 6:30 p.m.

Next Event

Team Stats

Malik Hall

Aaron Henry

Marcus Bingham Jr.

Joshua Langford

Players Mentioned

Marcus Bingham Jr.

Malik Hall

Joey Hauser

Aaron Henry

A.J. Hoggard