Liddell leads Ohio St. past skidding Spartans
No. 13 Ohio State 79, Michigan State 62: E.J. Liddell had 20 points and eight rebounds to lead host Ohio State (14-4, 8-4 Big Ten) to a rout of skidding Michigan State (8-6, 2-6) on Sunday.
Justin Ahrens added 17 for the workmanlike Buckeyes, who have won three in a row and six of seven.
Michigan State had hoped to rebound from an embarrassing 30-point loss to Rutgers on Thursday that followed a long COVID-19 layoff. The Spartans played better but still started sloppily, committing six turnovers and a dozen fouls in the first half while hitting two of their 10 3-point tries in the frame.
Joshua Langford led the Spartans with 14 points. They shot a dismal 32.1% as a team after managing just 26% against Rutgers.
The Buckeyes led by 12 at the half behind nine points from Liddell and seven from Ahrens, including a pair of 3pointers. Five Spartans picked up two fouls each in the opening frame and that caused some shuffling of the lineup.
The Spartans got within nine with 4:20 left, but their shooting just got worse. They hit just 25% of their shots in the second half after showing promise with a 40% clip in the first half.
The pandemic has been tough on the Spartans, who were ranked as high as No. 4 in the AP Top 25 earlier this season.
They’re trying to find their way back after a 20-day layoff and a 67-37 loss on Thursday to Rutgers, a team that had never beaten them.
If the slide continues, the Spartans’ streak of playing in 22 straight NCAA Tournaments – the third longest in the nation – could start to be in jeopardy. They were again without forward Gabe Brown because of COVID-19.
No. 6 Houston 70, SMU 48: Marcus Sasser scored 19 points and host Houston (15-1, 10-1 American) beat SMU (9-4, 5-4) for its eighth straight win.
Sasser bounced back to make five of his last 10 shots. After scoring just three points in a victory over Tulane on Thursday, he opened 0 for 5 against the Mustangs.
Justin Gorham had nine points and 17 rebounds for Houston, which won its 20th consecutive home game. Reggie Chaney added 10 points.