No. 5 Michigan State 67, Oakland 63: Adreian Payne collected 20 points and 10 rebounds and Branden Dawson tallied 16 points and 13 boards as the visiting Spartans survived a scare at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
Keith Appling scored 21 points for Michigan State (8-1), which was without leading scorer Gary Harris (ankle). Appling made four free throws down the stretch to seal it and finished 6-of-7 from the line.
Duke Mondy scored a game-high 24 points to go with seven steals and six rebounds for Oakland (2-9), which hung with the Spartans despite shooting 38.3 percent and going 8-of-27 from 3-point range. Leading scorer Travis Bader added 18 points but was just 5-of-20 from the field and 4-of-14 from behind the arc.
Appling hit the first two baskets of the second half, including a 3-pointer that gave the Spartans a 35-31 lead, but they couldn't shake the pesky Golden Grizzlies. There were eight lead changes before Appling hit a 3 and converted a three-point play during an 8-0 run as Michigan State took the lead for good.
Oakland led by as many as eight in the first half before settling for a 31-30 halftime advantage as most of Michigan State's players struggled. Payne scored 16 in the half and Dawson added eight, but the rest of the team combined for only six points.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Spartans have won all 12 meetings between the in-state foes. … Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said on his pregame radio show that redshirt freshman F Kenny Kaminski has been suspended indefinitely for failing to take care of off-court obligations. … Bader (401) moved into a tie for 10th all-time in 3-pointers made, matching Radford's Doug Day.
Michigan St | Oakland | |
Keith Appling 21 | Scoring | Duke Mondy 24 |
Keith Appling 4 | Assists | Travis Bader 3 |
Branden Dawson 13 | Rebounds | Duke Mondy 6 |
Keith Appling 6 | Free Throws Made | Travis Bader 4 |
Denzel Valentine 4 | Steals | Duke Mondy 7 |
Branden Dawson 3 | Blocks | N/A |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Michigan St | 67 | 42.1 | 6-16 | 13-19 | 14 | 37 | 5 | 11 | 17 |
Oakland | 63 | 38.3 | 8-27 | 9-10 | 12 | 27 | 0 | 8 | 14 |