MSU men's basketball: Lucas hits just in time

ANN ARBOR - Every eyeball in the place followed the basketball as it left the hands of Michigan's DeShawn Sims, every voice fell to a hush for that fraction of a second as the outcome of a classic game between rivals hung on its trajectory.

"I definitely thought he was gonna make it," Michigan State's Kalin Lucas said.

"Please don't go in," Raymar Morgan said. "That was the only thing on my mind."

Sims leaped over MSU's Durrell Summers to catch a perfect inbounds pass from Stu Douglass with 1.5 seconds left, and released it from 6 feet away as he was coming down. It hit the glass, grabbed the rim and rolled off - leaving No. 5 MSU with a 57-56 victory Tuesday at Crisler Arena and the best Big Ten start in program history.

Leaving Michigan 10-10 on the season and just short of an upset win that could have revived its fading NCAA Tournament hopes.

"It was dreadful," Sims said of watching the ball pop in and out. "But you know, one second left, usually miracles happen. And I just didn't get a miracle."

The Spartans (18-3 overall, 8-0 Big Ten) relied again on their miracle man. For the second game in a row, junior guard Kalin Lucas hit the winning jump shot in a one-point road victory.

In a frantic final possession against U-M's trapping 1-3-1 zone, Summers and Chris Allen stayed patient and finally got the ball to Lucas, who drove, pulled up and buried a 15-foot shot with 3.5 seconds left for the final margin.

"It's what he was put on this Earth to do," Morgan said of Lucas, who had 10 of his 12 points in the second half along with some key passes, and who stayed in the game on that final possession despite taking an inadvertent kick in the head from U-M's Manny Harris.

"I think I was made for it," Lucas said. "I think I was made to make big plays. Me hitting a shot or just trying to create for my teammates. ... I just think at clutch time, I want to have the ball in my hands."

Before Lucas' winner, MSU got a huge play from Draymond Green - who had departed the game earlier with a right knee injury that initially looked significant - to cut U-M's lead to 56-55.

Green rebounded a Summers miss and flipped to Morgan (game-high 20 points) for a layup with 1:09 left. On the other end, MSU's defense held U-M (3-5 Big Ten) scoreless in the final 2:38 to make the comeback possible.

"We had big defensive stops down the stretch and that's what you've got to do to win big games. And we had them," said MSU coach Tom Izzo, who won his 17th game in the past 20 against U-M after dropping the first five. "And we went to our go-to guy. And if anyone ever wonders why I expect a lot out of him, it shouldn't take you long to figure out why."

The 8-0 Big Ten start passes the previous best start of 7-0 set by the 1977-78 MSU team led by Earvin "Magic" Johnson. Tuesday's victory was the Spartans' 12th in 13 league road games, an unprecedented feat.

Of more significance is the apparent stranglehold it gives MSU in the league race, albeit with 10 games left.

"We can get all fat and sassy and then it all goes down the drain," Green warned, "if we lose some games that we're not supposed to lose."

It looked like Tuesday's game was U-M's to win, despite the fact that the Spartans owned the boards 41-25 and outshot the Wolverines 49 percent to 32.8 percent.

Turnovers were the story. The Spartans had 18, many of them unforced, and the Wolverines had just four.

"We just did not take care of the ball," Izzo said.

The game was close throughout, with 17 lead changes. U-M's biggest lead was seven, MSU's was five.

Sims, who had a team-high 19 points, hit some huge shots in the second half, but he put up an airball on a 3-point try with 30 seconds left and U-M clinging to a 56-55 lead.

Then came Lucas' heroics and the final sequence. U-M inbounded from under its basket with 3.5 ticks left and Green fouled Sims on purpose near halfcourt with 1.5 seconds remaining.

U-M coach John Beilein set up the final play, and MSU assistant coach Dwayne Stephens had it pegged. He said he saw the Wolverines run it recently against Indiana, and the Spartans were prepared for a lob to Sims.

Green was on Sims initially, but a pick forced Summers to switch onto him. Douglass got the ball over MSU 7-footer Tom Herzog and into Sims' hands.

There was some contact but not enough to warrant a foul call, as Sims and Summers both agreed afterward. Then came the hush, the miss and the MSU celebration.

"I just stopped and looked," Green said. "After the shot came off, I still just stood there. I was still in shock."