COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Michigan State nearly gave away a big lead on Tuesday night at Maryland, but in the end, it was Malik Hall who bailed out the Spartans.
After leading by 15 early in the second half, No. 13 Michigan State needed a bucket from Hall with 1.9 seconds to play to break a tie and pull off the 65-63 victory at the Xfinity Center.
Hall scored 16 to lead the Spartans (17-4, 8-2 Big Ten) while Joey Hauser and Marcus Bingham Jr. each added 10 points for the Spartans.
Eric Ayala had 15 points to lead Maryland (11-11, 3-8) while Donta Scott scored 14 and Fatts Russell added 10 for the Terrapins.
It was a slow offensive start for the Spartans, but for one of the few times this season, they did a good job of taking care of the ball, committing only three turnovers in the opening 20 minutes.
Maryland did have control early, however, using an 8-0 run to turn a 14-9 deficit into a 17-14 lead less than 10 minutes into the half, taking advantage of six offensive rebounds to control the game early.
But the Spartans climbed back with four straight points from Julius Marble, and after opening the game 5-for-17 shooting, they started to heat up over the final 10 minutes.
With the game tied at 25-25, Michigan State went on a 10-0 run to close the half as it went 7-for-12 from the field while hitting three of its final four attempts from 3-point range to take a 35-25 lead to the locker room, holding Maryland scoreless over the final 4:50.
Michigan State kept rolling early in the second half as it built its lead to 42-27 after a 3-pointer from Hauser after the Spartans grabbed an offensive rebound less than three minutes into the half.
But Maryland responded with an 11-0 run as the Spartans went cold from the field as the lead was trimmed to 42-38 with 14:51 to play.
The crowd was back in it, but Michigan State responded with four straight points from Hall and pushed the advantage to 51-42 with 11:35 to play on a triple from Bingham.
The Spartans couldn’t pull away, though, as the Terrapins chipped away and got within 54-50 before the second 3-pointer of the game from Bingham pushed the lead to 57-50 with 8:07 to play.
But Bingham picked up his fourth foul at the other end and was forced to the bench as Maryland closed the gap to 59-56 with four minutes left in the game.
A turnover by Hall led to a layup from Hakim Hart to cut the lead to one before Marble hit a pair of free throws but a Russell triple at the other end tied the game at 61 with 2:40 left in the game.
The teams traded free throws leading into the final minute before a Tyson Walker steal led to Hall’s winning bucket.
