Spartans slay Hoosiers

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- The No. 19 IU men's basketball team needed two things to happen Tuesday night. The first was that the Hoosiers figure out how to carry their home-court intensity with them to away games. The second was that the starting line-up would include freshman guard Bracey Wright.\nThe Hoosiers showed a higher level of intensity against Michigan State, and IU's leading scorer, Wright, who returned to the court as a starter after a four-game hiatus, contributed to this. But these factors were not enough to boost the Hoosiers (14-5, 4-3 Big Ten) over the Spartans (11-8, 3-4), as Michigan State won 61-54.\nWright, who injured a nerve in his back during the Jan. 11 Ohio State game, didn't score his first basket until 38 seconds left in the first half. He went 1-for-1 from the free throw line, good enough to tie the game at 27.\n"It was good to come back. I felt good out there; it was the best I felt in two weeks," Wright said. "I was in fine game condition, but it took a toll on my body in the last 10 or 11 minutes. I couldn't stand up."\nWright, who finished with four points and seven rebounds, exited the game with just over three minutes left in the second half because of cramps in his left leg.\nAs Wright was getting iced, junior center George Leach, who had 14 points in the game, was at the free throw line, sinking two baskets that brought the game within three for the Hoosiers. The Spartans answered with a jump shot that widened the score to 56-51 with just over two minutes left to play. \nThe closest IU would get in the game was two after senior guard Kyle Hornsby sank a three-point shot with 1:12 left.\nReminiscent of last year, the ball landed in Michigan State's Adam Ballinger's hands with just 30 seconds left in the game. Last year, Ballinger hit a trey with 53 seconds left in the game, which led to a 57-54 Spartan win. This year, IU was down a possession when Ballinger pulled up and hit a three-point shot, sealing the game for Michigan State.\n"That's just me not paying attention to our plays," Leach said. "I thought (MSU's Chris) Hill was going to drive, and I left Ballinger wide open. That's all I have to say."\nIt was IU that got on the board first in the game following a tipped MSU jump shot. Senior guard Tom Coverdale recovered the ball, and brought it down the court where senior forward Jeff Newton, who led the team in scoring with 15, scored on the putback.\nThe two teams traded shots, until the Hoosiers took a two-point lead with just over 17 minutes left in the half. The Spartans answered, going on a 8-4 scoring run which put IU down by four. \nNeither team trailed by more than four throughout the entire first half, and with Wright's free throw, the Hoosiers went into the locker room even with the Spartans.\n"(IU coach Mike Davis) was all encouraging at halftime," freshman guard Marshall Strickland said. "It was a tie game, so pretty much zero-zero. The fight was in the second half. You play teams day in, day out (in the Big Ten), and sometimes you'll fight and you won't win. That's what happened tonight"