By ,
Published May 02, 2016
Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) - Travis Trice scored 20 points as Michigan State rallied for a 62-58 win over No. 8 Maryland in the semifinals of the Big Ten Conference Tournament.
Branden Dawson scored 17 points with eight rebounds and Matt Costello had 10 points for the third-seeded Spartans (23-10), who will play sixth-ranked Wisconsin in Sunday's final.
"I think it's great for the Big Ten that the two of us are playing," said MSU coach Tom Izzo. "I'm excited for the chance to play them."
Michigan State will look to stay perfect in Big Ten championship contests. The Spartans have won all four times they have appeared in the conference title game, including last year's victory over rival Michigan.
Melo Trimble had 22 points and Dez Wells gave 10 points and seven rebounds for the No. 2 seed Terrapins (27-6), who had defeated Indiana in Friday's quarterfinals.
"I think (Trimble) got a little tired," said Maryland coach Mark Turgeon. "He's terrific. There's a reason we're 26-7, because we have a really good point guard."
Michigan State was trailing by 11 when Richard Pack hit a 3-pointer to give Maryland a 36-25 lead a minute into the second half, but the team then ripped off 15 straight points with Denzel Valentine's 3 giving the team the lead, and Costello putting in a layup for a 40-36 advantage with 12 minutes left.
Maryland answered to regain the lead and still held a 47-45 edge when Pack put in a layup, but Dawson answered with a free throw and jumper, while Trimble's free throw tied things at 48-all with just over five minutes to play.
A free throw and basket from Gavin Schilling were countered by a Wells jumper before Dawson hit a pair of free throws, and a Schilling free throw and dunk from Dawson gave the Spartans a 56-50 lead.
That proved to be the backbreaker, as the Terrapins were unable to make it a one-possession game the rest of the way.
Maryland led this game the entire first half as the team scored 12 of the first 13 points as Trimble capped the burst with a jumper five minutes in for a 12-1 lead.
A 3-pointer from Evan Smotrycz gave the Terrapins a 23-7 lead with 11 1/2 minutes to play, but a 13-2 run from the Spartans got them back in it as a Trice 3-ball made it a 25-20 game with 4 1/2 minutes left.
Maryland, though, scored the next four points and eventually took a 33-25 lead into the break.
Game Notes
Smotrycz finished the game with nine points and four rebounds ... Michigan State shot 44 percent and held a 33-30 edge on the glass ... Maryland made 40 percent of its shots.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/michigan-state-outs-no-8-maryland-in-big-ten-semis