Michigan State sends Virginia packing for 2nd straight year
Tom Izzo is the man of March.
Michigan State defeated Virginia 60-54 on Sunday to give the Spartans head coach a 13-1 record in the Round of 32, the best record belonging to a college basketball coach.
Travis Trice and Branden Dawson were a fearsome duo for the Spartans. Dawson started the Spartans with a layup, and Trice, who was hot right out of the gate, went on a 13-point run to push the Spartans to a 15-4 lead.
Trice led the charge against the Cavaliers posting 23 points, two rebounds, three assists and one steal. Dawson added 15 points and rounded out his stat line with nine rebounds, four blocks and one steal.
When it came to sinking deep shots, Michigan State knew to lean on Trice. One is fine, two is divine, Trice is niiiiiice.
Virginia took a while to warm up, but a vicious block by forward Darion Atkins on Alvin Ellis III gave the Cavaliers the energy they needed to come close to closing the gap. Atkins finished the game with 10 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks and Anthony Gill recorded a game-high 11 points and six rebounds, helping Virginia come within four points of tying the score. But ultimately, shooting 29.8 percent from the field just would not cut it for the Cavaliers.
Michigan State is now the second team in NCAA Tournament history to defeat the same top-two seed in back-to-back years after topping the Cavaliers in last season's Sweet Sixteen. Florida over UCLA in 2006 and 2007 is the only other team to defeat the same top-two seed in consecutive years.
Prospect Watch
Justin Anderson, F, Virginia: Anderson did not have as strong a game as spectators anticipated. The forward finished with eight points and finished 2-of-7 from the field and missed all four shots taken from beyond the arc.
Branden Dawson, G, Michigan State: Dawson activated beastmode to become the game's second-leading scorer. Watching the Spartan forward power his way through a stout defense for a strong and-1 was sweet.
Mike Tobey, F, Virginia: In limited action, Tobey was able to make some noise on the offensive glass, pulling down three offensive boards. He also threw down an and-1 dunk on a sweet feed from Malcolm Brogdon, then completed the three-point play from the line.