EAST LANSING, Mich. — Indiana defeated Michigan State at the Breslin Center by a final score of 71-67 Tuesday evening.

Indiana led at halftime 32-29.  The Hoosiers were led in the game by Malik Reneau with 19 points.

The three keys to the game, highlights and finals stats are below.

For Mike Woodson and Malik Reneau postgame, GO HERE.

Indiana (15-10, 6-8) will host UCLA on Friday evening.

THREE KEYS TO THE GAME

1. They closed.  Indiana has given up multiple late game leads this season, and it looked like they might give one away again.  The Hoosiers led by nine with just over three minutes left before MSU cut it to one on multiple occasions.  The Hoosiers made free throws to close it out in the final minute, including six straight makes in the final 13 seconds.  IU coach Mike Woodson was subbing good shooters for defense on every dead ball during the free throws down the stretch.

2. Zone defense.  Indiana made an early game switch to a zone defense in the first half and MSU shot just 38.2% for the game including just 4-of-24 from three.  The Spartans were out to a 20-8 lead before the switch, but went ice cold from the field for most of the rest of the game.  The Hoosiers had played some zone throughout the season, but never this much.  IU went with it for the entire second half and executed well.

3. Reneau and Ballo dominate.  Indiana big men Malik Reneau and Oumar Ballo combined for 33 points and 22 rebounds.  Both players battled foul trouble and Ballo eventually fouled out.  Reneau came off the bench and had a dominant second half, pouring in 16 points after the break.  Indiana went to Reneau in the post repeatedly in the final 10 minutes, and he delivered.

HIGHLIGHTS

FINAL STATS

For complete coverage of IU basketball, GO HERE.    

The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”

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