National Basketball Association
Michigan St 76, Louisville 70
When: 2:20 PM ET, Sunday, March 29, 2015
Where: Carrier Dome, Syracuse, New York
Officials:
# Pat Driscoll, # Verne Harris, # Doug Shows
Attendance:
24404
By SportsDirect Inc.
Michigan State 76, Louisville 70 (OT): Travis Trice scored 17 points and Bryn Forbes added five of his 14 points in overtime as the Spartans prevailed in an NCAA Tournament East Regional final from Syracuse, N.Y.
Denzel Valentine pitched in with 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists as the seventh-seeded Spartans (27-11) advanced to next Saturday's Final Four - their seventh since 1999 - against top-seeded Duke. Branden Dawson contributed 11 rebounds and four blocks to go with nine points, including a key putback with 31.7 seconds left in overtime.
No. 4 seed Louisville (27-9) led by eight points at halftime and had a chance to win the game late in regulation, when Mangok Mathiang split two free throws with 4.9 seconds left, forcing the game to an extra session. Wayne Blackshear scored 28 points to pace the Cardinals, while Montrezl Harrell notched 16 points and nine rebounds and Terry Rozier added 13 points on 6-of-23 shooting.
Forbes opened overtime with a 3-pointer and later added two foul shots to help Michigan State create a 72-66 lead on Valentine's transition layup with 2:04 left, although Rozier made a jumper and Blackshear knocked down two free throws to get Louisville within two with 1:04 remaining. Dawson's putback on the other end restored a four-point edge and the Cardinals turned it over on their next possession before Trice went 2-of-2 from the stripe to seal it.
The Cardinals trailed by six with about 3 1/2 minutes to go in regulation before unleashing a 9-2 run that Blackshear capped with a transition 3-pointer and two foul shots with 1:13 left. The Spartans regained the lead on Marvin Clark Jr.'s bank shot in the lane with 40.4 seconds left, but the freshman forward missed two free throws with 21.4 seconds remaining to provide one last chance for Louisville, which tied the game when Mathiang's first foul shot bounced high off the rim and dropped in.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Harrell (6-of-7 field goals) and Blackshear (3-of-4 3-pointers) each scored 12 points during the first half to help Louisville to a 40-32 edge at halftime. ... After committing five turnovers in the Sweet 16, the Spartans had eight in the first half Sunday and finished with 12 on the day. ... The Cardinals shot 53.1 percent in the first half before going 6-of-32 the rest of the way. Harrell did not make a shot from the field after the break.
Top Game Performances
| Michigan St |
|
Louisville |
|
Travis Trice 17 |
Scoring |
Wayne Blackshear 28 |
|
Denzel Valentine 6 |
Assists |
Montrezl Harrell 4 |
|
Branden Dawson 11 |
Rebounds |
Montrezl Harrell 9 |
|
Gavin Schilling 4 |
Free Throws Made |
Wayne Blackshear 12 |
|
Denzel Valentine 2 |
Steals |
Terry Rozier 4 |
|
Branden Dawson 4 |
Blocks |
Mangok Mathiang 2 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Michigan St
|
76 |
43.3 |
9-23 |
15-20 |
20 |
35 |
7 |
5 |
12 |
| Louisville
|
70 |
35.9 |
4-11 |
20-29 |
10 |
36 |
6 |
6 |
9 |
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