5 Takeaways: Michigan State holds off feisty Buckeyes for 'Senior Day' victory

Michigan State got out to a fast start and held the lead for nearly all 40 minutes of the game against Ohio State in a 84-78 victory on 'Senior Day' in East Lansing.

Leading by six with six seconds left in the game, the Breslin Center crowd gave a standing ovation as seniors Malik Hall, Jason Whitens, Tyson Walker and Joey Hauser kissed the Spartan helmet logo at midcourt in what could be the final home game of their careers.

Here are five takeaways from another victory for MSU:

1.) Spartans stay hot from deep

Michigan State entered today's game having shot an incredible 37-for-65 (56.9%) from 3-point range in its last three games. The hot shooting continued today for the Spartans, who knocked down 12-of-20 attempts from deep against the Buckeyes.

MSU has reached double-digits in 3-pointers made in four consecutive games, and has now shot 57.6% from deep during this stretch.

Today, Hauser shot a perfect 3-for-3 from deep, while Jaden Akins continued his recent hot streak by shooting 3-for-4 from outside. A.J. Hoggard went 2-for-3 from 3, while Malik Hall was 2-for-4 and Tre Hollaman was 1-for-1. The only Spartan to shoot under 50% from 3-point range today was Walker, who went 1-for-4.

If Michigan State can continue to shoot even relatively close to this well from outside, the Spartans will be a team that nobody wants to play this March.

2.) Five in double-figures for MSU

Hello, balanced scoring...

Michigan State had five players scoring in double figures today, led by A.J. Hoggard with 23 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the floor and 9-of-11 from the free throw line. He added seven assists, three rebounds and a steal with just one turnover in another impressive outing for the junior point guard.

Joey Hauser continued his resurgent year, finishing the regular season with 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting for the Spartans. Hauser added six rebounds and two assists. Tyson Walker got off to a slower start today, but got more involved in the second half to finish with 15 points. He added six assists, three rebounds and a steal.

Malik Hall played an excellent first half to get the Spartans started. The senior had 10 points at the break to lead MSU, on an efficient 4-of-8 shooting. Hall was held scoreless in the second half, but finished with three rebounds and a blocked shot.

Finally, Akins continued his recent offensive upswing with 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting, adding three rebounds.

3.) Still work to do defensively

After MSU's last game against Nebraska, head coach Tom Izzo said the Spartans weren't defending the way Michigan State teams are expected to do so.

That recent trend continued today, as MSU allowed a struggling Ohio State team to shoot 48 percent from the floor and 44 percent from 3-point range. The Spartans haven't been able to generate as many turnovers as they'd like either. Today, the Buckeyes had just eight giveaways, which led to 10 points for Michigan State.

As well as the Spartans have shot the ball lately, this team will have to return to being the lockdown defensive squad that it was for the majority of the season to make a serious run in March.

4.) Points in transition

This has been one of the slowest paced Tom Izzo-coached teams ever, but Michigan State got back to its roots today by getting out in transition on offense.

The Spartans scored 23 fastbreak points today against the Buckeyes, a number that MSU has not approached in quite some time. Combine the transition points with Michigan State's hot shooting in the halfcourt, and all of a sudden this Spartans' squad has been able to score at a very impressive clip.

5.) Other notables...

Junior center Mady Sissoko only scored four points for the Spartans today, but he led the team in plus-minus as Michigan State outscored Ohio State by 17 points with him on the floor. Sissoko made an impact with seven rebounds, an assist and a blocked shot.

The rebounding battle finished even, but MSU allowed seven offensive rebounds to the Buckeyes, which OSU converted into in 11 points. This is still an area that the Spartans need to button down as tournament play is set to begin.

Up Next

Michigan State will head to Chicago next weekend to compete in the Big Ten Tournament. The Spartans await the results of other conference games still to be played this weekend to find out what their seed will be in the league tournament.