FINAL SCORE: 72-58 | Box score
We feeling better out there, guys?
Sure, IU got murdered this evening. But all the worries about this team in recent days, that they were lacking effort and hustle and heart and resolve wasn’t the case tonight. They took some charges. When absolutely everything was going Michigan State’s way, they found a way to stay in the game with an almost perfect night at the free-throw line. They trapped and defended their tails off in the final minutes of the game when a win was far out of reach.
They looked more like the scrappy, hard-working underdogs tonight than the team that wasn’t even showing up.
That being said, this evening was a rough one.
IU’s lack of size was exploited time and again. The Spartans pumped in the points inside — 40 of their 72 points came in the paint — and stymied the Hoosiers around the basket on the offensive end — IU only had eight points in the paint this evening, and that was a large reason why they shot so poorly — 34.9 percent — tonight; unless you are hot, hot, hot from the outside, it’s tough to shoot a high-percentage if you’re not also getting some bunnies in the paint. IU did win the rebounding battle tonight, as they snatched 30 (17 offensive) to the Spartans’ 24 (11 offensive). But the Hoosiers are a solid offensive rebounding team to begin with, and when you miss so many shots, those offensive-rebounding opportunities present themselves more often.
The All-Big Ten preview is ITH’s look at our picks for the top players in the Big Ten this season. Today: Kalin Lucas of Michigan State.
Steve Grinczel is the Michigan State beat writer for the Booth Newspaper chain, which includes the Ann Arbor News, Bay City Times, Flint Journal, Grand Rapids Press, Jackson Citizen Patriot, Kalamazoo Gazette, Muskegon Chronicle, and Saginaw News — and 
ITH Super Happy Fun Time All-Big Ten Preview: Kalin Lucas
Unlike the William Buford selection, giving the nod to Kalin Lucas for the All-Big Ten team required little thought. The torn left achilles tendon Lucas suffered in last year’s NCAA Tournament run not only hurt the Spartans’ chances of cutting down the nets in Indianapolis, it also ended any chance the 6-0 guard would declare forgo his senior season.
And so he returns to East Lansing with a legitimate shot at another Final Four, a Big Ten championship and conference player of the year accolades (an award he already won once as a sophomore). He’ll also be out to prove to NBA scouts that he’s worthy of being selected in next June’s draft.
Lucas’ 2009-2010 numbers: 14.8 ppg, 3.9 apg, 1.9 rpg, 35% 3PT, 45% FG, 77% FT. His 80 turnovers (2.4 per game) led Michigan State.
All signs point to the recovery and return of Lucas being on track. He’s scheduled to return to the court sometime this month and barring any setbacks, should be ready for the start of practice next month.
The uncertainty, much like in the case of Maurice Creek’s knee, lies in how long it will take Lucas to become 100 percent comfortable making explosive moves on his surgically repaired achilles tendon. The hope for both Tom Izzo and Michigan State fans is that no setbacks occur as the Spartans face a tough non-conference slate that includes a trip to Maui, Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium for the ACC-Big Ten Challenge, Syracuse at the Carrier Dome and Texas at home. In a word: brutal.
Assuming Lucas is able to return to his pre-injury form, it’s hard to deny the impact he’ll have given his versatility and experience playing at a high-level. The combination of his ability to distribute, penetrate, pull-up and knock down perimeter shots makes him one of the toughest guards to prepare for in the country. And even if Lucas needs a couple of months to return to form, if he’s anywhere close to 100 percent when the Big Ten rolls around, he’s a good bet for his second conference POY in three seasons.