Spartans shocked at Iowa

IOWA CITY, Iowa - The Michigan State Spartans figured it might be a good thing to get away from home.

Well, maybe not.

In the worst display of MSU basketball since a 62-38 loss at Purdue last February - and the biggest upset loss in who knows how long - the Spartans fell 43-36 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena to an Iowa team that came in with a 7-9 record.

It was the fewest points by an MSU team since 1952. And the Spartans labored for the 36 they got.

"That'll be a (game) tape that gets burned," a subdued Tom Izzo said afterward, "just because there's nothing I could get out of it that's positive. ... It was a total breakdown by just about every player on our team, and that doesn't happen very often and I don't think it'll happen again."

But this one might prove quite costly in MSU's quest for its first Big Ten title since 2001.

"We can't play like this (on the road)," MSU's Raymar Morgan said. "With this type of effort, we'll lose every one."

The No. 6 Spartans (14-2 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) struggled in close home wins over Minnesota and Purdue to begin league play, and Izzo's recent warnings that all was not well began to ring louder.

But this was like nothing imaginable from a team that came in with an 11-game winning streak. The Spartans could barely function in losing to an Iowa team (8-9, 1-3) that shot 27.5 percent from the field and missed 13 free throws.

"We didn't do anything right, that was obvious," MSU's Drew Neitzel said. "I wouldn't say this is a crisis, but it's definitely a tough loss. We definitely have to fight, we're backed into a corner.

"We've got to figure some things out and change it. (Izzo's message) is just not sinking in. Coach knows what he's talking about, about toughness and turnovers, and we're not listening."

MSU came in with three key desires - fewer turnovers, more production from Neitzel and better play from its big men.

The turnovers kept coming in droves, with a total of 18, including four straight traveling violations in one stretch.

Neitzel struggled to score 10 points, five in the final 37 minutes of play. He shot 4-of-14 from the field, missing a fast-break layup that would have given MSU the lead with about two minutes remaining.

And the big men were outplayed by Iowa's bunch, as in a 62-60 loss here a year ago.

"It's discouraging," Izzo said. "Our leadership was really ... It was hard. We just were out of it the whole night."

Morgan also scored 10 for MSU but had his worst game of the season. Goran Suton had nine points and 11 rebounds, making some second-half shots that kept MSU in it.

Freshman guard Kalin Lucas, who has been on fire of late, went scoreless, missing all eight of his shots. MSU shot 30.8 percent as a team.

The Spartans led 18-9 early, but suffered a 10-minute scoreless stretch, allowing the Hawkeyes to score 13 straight points in that stretch. Iowa never gave up the lead again.

Iowa, which has losses to Louisiana-Monroe and Drake, missed 13 of its first 14 shots. But the Hawkeyes got 22 points from Tony Freeman and played solid defense all night.

Suton got MSU within a basket, 29-27, with a jump shot with 8:50 left. He was fouled two minutes later with a chance to tie. He hit one of two.

After a Freeman free throw to make it 35-32, Suton hit a bank shot to cut it to a point again, with 3:48 left.

Then came a very fitting play. Neitzel swiped Freeman and raced downcourt for a layup that would have put MSU in the lead. It went halfway down and popped out.

A Travis Walton airball on MSU's next possession, followed by a Freeman 3-pointer for a five-point lead, essentially ended MSU's chances.

"What's next is, I think they'll get my attention now," Izzo said of his team.

MICHIGAN ST. (14-2) \u2003

Morgan 5-12 0-2 10, Naymick 0-1 0-0 0, Suton 4-9 1-2 9, Walton 0-1 0-0 0, Neitzel 4-14 0-0 10, Ibok 1-1 0-0 2, Lucas 0-8 0-0 0, Allen 1-2 0-0 3, Summers 1-3 0-0 2, Dahlman 0-0 0-0 0, Gray 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 16-52 1-4 36.

IOWA (8-9) \u2003

Tate 2-3 5-12 9, Gorney 0-2 0-0 0, Freeman 5-12 7-9 22, Johnson 1-11 0-0 2, Kelly 0-5 1-2 1, Bohall 0-0 0-0 0, Peterson 0-2 0-0 0, Looby 3-5 3-6 9. Totals 11-40 16-29 43.

Halftime—Iowa 20-18. 3-Point Goals—Michigan St. 3-12 (Neitzel 2-8, Allen 1-2, Lucas 0-1, Morgan 0-1), Iowa 5-21 (Freeman 5-9, Peterson 0-2, Kelly 0-3, Johnson 0-7). Fouled Out—None. Rebounds—Michigan St. 40 (Suton 11), Iowa 35 (Looby 8). Assists—Michigan St. 11 (Neitzel 6), Iowa 9 (Freeman 3). Total Fouls—Michigan St. 25, Iowa 10. A—13,044.