Michigan State junior guard Tyson Walker buried a decisive three-pointer with 1.4 seconds to go on Saturday afternoon as unranked Michigan State (19–9, 10–7 Big Ten) upset No. 4 Purdue (24–5, 13–5 Big Ten) by a final score of 68–65 in East Lansing.
The Spartans, who lost five out of their last six entering play, forced 17 Boilermaker turnovers, 10 of which came in the second half, to lead to the crucial home win.
Purdue received strong offensive performances from center Zach Edey (25 points) and guard Jaden Ivey (16 points) but couldn’t overcome the turnovers or lapses in effort on the defensive end.
Michigan State shot over 47% from the floor and 45% from three, and had four players score in double-figures, led by 13 points from senior forward Gabe Brown.
For Purdue, the loss has potential implications on NCAA tournament seeding. Sports Illustrated’s Kevin Sweeney had Purdue just off the top-seeded line in his latest bracket watch, and will now likely have additional work to do throughout the rest of the regular season and conference tournament to try to earn a one-seed on Selection Sunday.
Michigan State, meanwhile, entered the weekend as a No. 7 seed in Sweeney’s latest bracket watch, and could move up after the huge home victory against the Boilermakers.
Up next, Purdue takes on No. 13 Wisconsin in Camp Randall on Tuesday night, while Michigan State travels to Ann Arbor to take on Michigan.
