Indiana

Michigan State suffers another close loss in final regular season game vs. Indiana, 65-64

Published

2 years ago

March 10, 2024

Michigan State suffers another close loss in final regular season game vs. Indiana, 65-64

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – One shot after another missed the mark, clanging off the rim and banging off the backboard.

One Michigan State basketball player after another tumbled to the floor, losing their footing – figuratively and literally – on offense and defense.

One rebound after another went to Indiana, the Spartans getting outpositioned, outmuscled and outhustled.

It could not have been a worse start for Tom Izzo’s team in its last regular-season game. After all, he pointed to this road trip against the Hoosiers as the start of “tournament time” for MSU. Only the Spartans didn’t get started Sunday until they found themselves down 16 points a little more than 12 minutes into the game.

That woke them up. And those same shots started dropping. A 33-10 comeback run between the end of the first half and the start of the second flipped it into a seven-point lead.

Only to watch it all slip away in the end.

Tyson Walker scored 20 of his 30 points in a furious second-half rally, but the senior missed a driving layup with 6 seconds left and Indiana tipped the ball out to escape with a 65-64 victory at Assembly Hall.

MSU (18-13, 10-10 Big Ten) opens Big Ten tournament play Thursday as the No. 8 seed, drawing the No. 9 seed in the noon game that day at Target Center (streaming on Peacock). That winner gets the dubious task of facing No. 1 seed Purdue on Friday.

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Kel’el Ware scored 19 of his 28 points in the second half, including splitting a pair of free throws with 17.8 seconds to play, to give Indiana (18-13, 10-10) its final lead in a game filled with three lead changes and four ties in the final half.

Ware added 12 rebounds, while Malik Reneau scored 16 points with five boards and five assists and Mackenzie Mgbako added 13 points.

Jaden Akins and A.J. Hoggard each had 10 points and Malik Hall added seven, but they combined to go 11-for-33 from the floor. Walker was 11-for-21 as the Spartans shot 38.5% overall and went 8-for-25 from 3-point range. Hall had seven rebounds, while Hoggard had six assists.

Worst start imaginable

Things could not have started much worse for MSU at both ends of the court.

Xavier Booker got his second start in the last four games, and it was evident from the outset that facing Indiana’s young and talented frontcourt was a bad matchup for the Spartans’ freshman. He missed rebounding opportunities and struggled defensively as the Hoosiers attacked him inside and pounded the boards.

That also coincided with a brutal start on offense in which MSU missed 12 of its first 14 shots. Indiana opened 8-of-14 from the field and spaced things out by going 4-for-5 from 3-point range in the first 6:46 to build a 20-5 lead.

The Hoosiers’ lead swelled to 16 on a Ware banked-in jumper from the paint with 7:53 to go. But Mady Sissoko threw down a dunk after a lob entry pass from Hoggard that jumpstarted the Spartans’ comeback run as their defense began to finally began to disrupt Indiana’s offensive rhythm.

After that hot start, the Hoosiers finished 5-for-17 and committed all nine of their first-half turnovers in the final 12:35. MSU fought back from a 16-point hole with a 19-8 run in the last 7:28 to trail 34-29 at half.

Walker, who missed his first three shots, started to heat up after a driving layup turned into a three-point play with 8:35 left. He would hit two more jumpers after Sissoko’s dunk, then buried a 3-pointer with a minute left before half. Hall’s tip-in with 9 seconds left helped the Spartans close the half on a 19-8 surge in the final 7:28 to pull within 34-29 at the break.

After opening the game 3-for-20, the Spartans made nine of their final 12 attempts. Walker had 10 points at the break, while Hoggard hit both of his 3-point tries as the rest of his teammates were 1-for-8.

Indiana got 29 points and 15 rebounds from its inside trio of Ware, Reneau and Mgbako in the first half. The Hoosiers had a dominating 24-15 advantage on the boards.

Too little too late

That momentum carried over into the second half, with MSU coming out of the locker room with a Walker-fueled 14-2 burst to take the lead.

On one trip, Akins got three 3-point attempts and finally buried his third. He connected with another on the next trip, then Walker hit his second of the half to force Indiana coach Mike Woodson to call timeout 4:02 into the half. Out of that, Hoggard drove and dropped a floater after exceptional perimeter ball movement from Akins and Walker. MSU found itself up 43-36 with 15:24 to play.

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But Indiana again began to take the ball inside to exploit the Spartans in the paint. Ware and Reneau combined for 14 straight Hoosier points, while Walker had eight of the Spartans’ 10 in that stretch. But an 8-0 Indiana run, with back-to-back 3-pointers from Mgbako over Hoggard and another from Xavier Johnson, gave Indiana back the lead and set up a back-and-forth finish over the last eight-plus minutes.

The two teams traded buckets and leads from there, with a Carson Cooper put-back dunk after Johnson’s 3-pointer giving MSU some juice back. Walker hit a pair of free throws with 2:10 left, but Ware answered with a layup through a foul but missed the free throw. Then Walker landed another counter punch to tie it up at 64-all with a driving layup around ware with 1:29 to play.

MSU had a chance to take the lead after that, but Walker missed a layup and Cooper’s put-back attempt banged off the rim and got knocked out. Ware posted up Hall and drew a foul with 17.8 left, missing the first but hitting the second.

With 14.5 left, after an MSU timeout, Walker drove right. His shot missed, then got knocked away to midcourt, where the Hoosiers gathered it up and raced downcourt to run out the clock.

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.

Subscribe to the “Spartan Speak” podcast for new episodes weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts.

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Indiana

Indiana Pacers To Add Wing Jalen Slawson Via A Two-Way Contract

Published

3 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Indiana Pacers To Add Wing Jalen Slawson Via A Two-Way Contract

Indiana Pacers’ Jalen Slawson dribbles during the second half of an NBA preseason basketball game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

INDIANAPOLIS – The Indiana Pacers plan to sign wing Jalen Slawson to a two-way contract. The 26-year old forward has spent the ongoing campaign with the Pacers G League affiliate franchise, the Noblesville Boom. It’s a one-year pact covering the rest of the 2025-26 season.

Slawson was a second-round pick back in 2023 and spent his rookie season with the Sacramento Kings. That campaign, the Furman product appeared in 12 games and averaged 0.7 points and 0.6 rebounds per game. Since then, he has bounced around between the Orlando Magic and Pacers organizations.

Most of Slawson’s time in the pros has come via the G League. With the Kings and Magic affiliate teams, the forward averaged between 12 and 13 points per game while being a solid passer and rebounder for his position.

That got him a training camp invite with Indiana last fall. Slawson spent all of the 2025 preseason on an Exhibit 10 deal with the Pacers, and he appeared in all four of the team’s tune-up games ahead of the regular season. He averaged 2.8 points and 3.5 rebounds per game.

Slawson was waived just before the regular season, but the Pacers affiliate team owned his G League rights, and he’s spent the entire season with the Noblesville Boom. That’s where the 6-foot-7 forward has popped – he’s averaging G League career highs of 19.2 points and 5.4 assists per game for the Boom this season, including an improved 34.7% three-point percentage.

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA – OCTOBER 7: Jules Bernard #14 of the Minnesota Timberwolves dribbles the ball against Jalen Slawson #18 of the Indiana Pacers during the second half of the preseason game at Target Center on October 7, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

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He’s been among Noblesville’s best players this year, and with the team losing many players to injury or overseas opportunities, he has recently become the G League’ club’s top option. Even with more responsibility and attention, Slawson has continued to produce.

Now, he gets a call up to the Pacers via a two-way contract. He’s eligible to be active for 13 of the Pacers final 22 games – two-way contract players are only able to appear in a maximum of 50 games in a league year, and that ratio of games gets prorated if they are signed mid-season.

Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle had good memories of Slawson’s play for Indiana during the preseason. “ I think he’s an NBA player,” Carlisle said. “He’s had a good year with the Boom and this will be a great opportunity for him to play some games.”

Two-way contracts provide a salary that is half of the NBA’s rookie minimum, which would equate to $636k over the course of a full season. Prorated for the current day on the calendar, that means Slawson will make about $161k on his two-way with Indiana the rest of the season.

Two-way deals have no impact on a team’s salary cap, so the Pacers have no changes to their spending reality. They opened up a two-way spot by converting the contract of Quenton Jackson earlier this weekend.

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Highlights: Beech Grove at Whiteland; February 27, 2026

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15 hours ago

February 28, 2026

Press Room

Highlights: Beech Grove at Whiteland; February 27, 2026

WHITELAND, Ind. (WISH) — “The Zone” featured highlights from eight high school boys basketball games from across central Indiana on Friday.

Watch highlights of Beech Grove at Whiteland above.

Final Score: Whiteland 89 Beech Grove 61

“The Zone” airs each Friday at 11:08 p.m. Click here to watch ‘The Zone’ for basketball highlights on February 27, 2026.

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Indiana

Is Darryn Peterson Trying to Avoid Indiana?

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1 day ago

February 27, 2026

Press Room

Is Darryn Peterson Trying to Avoid Indiana?

The Indiana Pacers are hoping to retain their 2026 first-round pick, which is protected 1-4 and 10-30. If the selection lands between 5 and 9, it conveys to the Los Angeles Clippers as part of the Ivica Zubac–Bennedict Mathurin trade.

At the top of the 2026 NBA Draft class, three names are consistently labeled as generational talents: AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer and Darryn Peterson.

Indiana would welcome any of the three. The bigger question is whether that feeling would be mutual.

On a recent episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, Simmons was joined by draft analysts Tate Frazier and J. Kyle Mann. During the discussion, Mann shared an interesting note about Peterson.

“I’ve gotten the impression from talking to people close to Darryn,” Mann said, “that Darryn is more likely to say, I’m interested in being the full on brain of this team. I don’t really want to play with another superstar, I want to be the center of the universe.”
J. Kyle Mann on The Bill Simmons Podcast
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If that perception holds weight, it creates an intriguing dynamic.

The Pacers were one game away from an NBA championship last season and already feature two established stars in Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam. Indiana is not a franchise searching for a singular identity, it already has one.

To be clear, Mann’s comments reflect conversations and impressions, not a public statement from Peterson himself. Still, the fit is worth examining. Indiana’s backcourt rotation already includes Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith and T.J. McConnell. If Peterson were the pick, the Pacers would find ways to get him on the floor. He is that talented. But Indiana could not offer him an immediate “face of the franchise” role the way a Brooklyn, Sacramento or Washington might.

Mann also offered insight into how Dybantsa may view a situation like Indiana’s.

“AJ, people that know them both have told me that AJ is probably more likely to fit in with an Indiana,” Mann said. “Which is interesting because AJ likes to have the ball. Is he willing to be quick off of the ball with Haliburton? I just think that’s an interesting wrinkle in this.”
J. Kyle Mann on The Bill Simmons Podcast

The contrast is fascinating.

Hearing that Dybantsa would fit in more than Peterson is intriguing. Play style wise, I would lean more towards Peterson’s fitting how Indiana likes to play, especially with how Dybantsa has been utilized at BYU.

Jan 24, 2026; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Kansas Jayhawks guard Darryn Peterson (22) looks to pass against BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) during the first half at Mizzou Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

If we’re talking locker room fit, I think Dybantsa would embody what a Pacer is all about. Comes from a small market. Wants to win and doesn’t need the big city to do it in. He’s confident but won’t let his ego interfere with the success of the team. Just a levelheaded kid with a desire to be great, and would have one of the best playmaking point guards alongside him to help maximize his talent.

These two are the most polarizing and often mentioned names amongst NBA draft circles when looking at the top two in the class. If the comments made by Mann come to be true, the Pacers would be better off drafting the uber talented 6-9 forward, Dybantsa, than drafting a 6-6 elite shooting guard who would rather be “the guy” than a guy.