BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Kel’el Ware had 28 points, 12 rebounds and the go-ahead free throw to lead Indiana to a 65-64 victory over Michigan State on Sunday as the Hoosiers wrapped up the Big Ten regular season with their fourth consecutive win.
The score was tied three times in the final three minutes. The last tie was at 64 on a driving layup by MSU’s Tyson Walker with 1:28 remaining. After a series of misses, Ware made one of two free throws and the Hoosiers led 65-64 with 17 seconds left. Walker missed a jumper with 4 seconds left and Indiana rebounded to run out the clock.
Ware scored 19 points in the second half, making 9 of 13 shots. For the game, he missed his first five foul shots before connecting on the sixth. Malik Reneau added 16 points and Mackenzie Mgbako had 13. Only five players scored for the Hoosiers (18-13, 10-10 Big Ten).
Walker scored 30 points for Michigan State (18-13, 10-10). Jaden Akins and A.J. Hoggard added 10 points each.
The Hoosiers got 10 points each from Reneau and Mgbako in the first half and led 34-29 at halftime. Indiana had an early 20-5 lead and maintained a double-digit advantage until the Spartans’ Walker and Malik Hall combined to score the last eight points of the half.
The Spartans scored the first 11 points of the second half, stretching their scoring run to 19 in a row and taking a 43-36 lead. Indiana chipped away at the lead and eventually went ahead 56-55 on Xavier Johnson’s 3-pointer near the eight-minute mark. Ninety seconds later, a dunk by Ware gave the Hoosiers a 58-57 advantage and Michigan State never regained the lead.
