Michigan State bounces back in win over No. 10 Illinois

LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) – After Tuesday’s loss at Minnesota, Michigan State men’s basketball coach Tom Izzo said it was the most mad he’s been in a while.

He also knew the road wasn’t going to get any easier with his team welcoming in No. 10 Illinois on Saturday.

Izzo challenged his team before the Illini came to town, and they responded by winning a thriller 88-80.

It was the definition of a back-and-forth game with 16 lead changes and 15 ties. The seniors led the way for MSU as Malik Hall, Tyson Walker, and AJ Hoggard had 64 of MSU’s 88 points.

For Hoggard, the 23 points is a season-high, which is what his coach knows he’s capable of.

“AJ’s been a guy that I’ve been on for four years. Tonight you saw why,” Izzo said. “He played extremely well and when he got into people defensively, and everything, you know, I told them at halftime, if we win this game, I was going to kill them. That’s what I needed on a regular basis.”

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