One Key Aspect Led to Spartans' Win Over Illinois

The Michigan State Spartans earned another massive win as they took down the Illinois Fighting Illini at home on Sunday afternoon. One key aspect to their performance was a significant reason why they are still undefeated in Big Ten play.

Michigan State guard Tre Holloman (5) attempts a free throw against Minnesota during the second half of Second Round of Big Ten tournament at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn. on Thursday, March 14, 2024. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

The No. 12 Michigan State Spartans (16-2, 7-0) came out on top of a gritty Big Ten battle as they earned an 80-78 win over the No. 19 Illinois Fighting Illini (13-5, 5-3) at home on Sunday afternoon. The biggest key to their 11th-straight victory was sensational free throw shooting.

The Spartans went to the line 27 times and sunk 21 free throw shots, with many of them coming down the stretch in a close contest. Illinois shot the same number of free throws but made four less at 17-27. A 4-point swing in favor of the Spartans in a game that was decided by 2 points.

Amongst the starting five for the Spartans, they were 15-17 from the line, including a stellar performance from junior guard Tre Holloman going 7-8 on free throws and finishing with 17 points. Off the bench, senior forward Frankie Fidler was a perfect 4-4 when sent to the foul line.

Michigan State entered the contest as the third-best team in the entire country in free throw percentage at 81.6%. It did not quite meet their average, but several late-game shots at the charity stripe were pivotal in the Spartans chances of winning the ballgame.

It was a wise game plan for Coach Tom Izzo and his staff to help create an impressive amount of foul shots. The Spartans only attempted 10 three-pointers on 65 total shots, meaning that they made it a priority to go to the rim, look for contact, and make a basket or go shoot free throws.

The Illini committed 21 total fouls and put the Spartans in the double bonus with a good chunk of clock left the second half. Not to mention, Illinois head coach Brad Underwood was called for a technical foul which gave Fidler two of his four free shots.

This was a statement win for the Spartans who had not faced a ranked team since the Thanksgiving and took advantage of the opportunity to show the rest of the conference and country how impressive this group is and the ability to find do the little things to win important games.

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