Michigan
Zach Edey, Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer lift Purdue basketball to Big Ten title
WEST LAFAYETTE — Confetti was netted near Mackey Arena’s rooftop, but Michigan State threatened to put a damper on Purdue basketball’s Big Ten championship celebration.
Zach Edey, Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer and the rest of the Boilermakers made sure that didn’t happen.
Third-ranked Purdue fell behind by eight points midway through the first half before storming back and beating the Spartans 80-74.
Confetti dropped and a championship trophy was presented as the Boilermakers (26-3, 15-3) clinched at least a share of the regular season title, repeating as league champions.
Purdue can clinch the outright title with a win at Illinois on Tuesday or at home against Wisconsin on March 10. Illinois needs to win out and have Purdue lose to Wisconsin to earn a share of the league title.
It was over when
When the Spartans built their largest lead at 24-16, Purdue responded with a 22-6 run. Michigan State scored the final five points of the first half, but Purdue was able to come out of halftime with a lead.
The Boilermakers opened the second half on a 16-4 run, making for a 38-10 run overall and a 54-39 lead.
Tyson Walker, who had 12 points in the first half, was held in check while Purdue built its double-digit lead. Walker scored just two points in the second half.
Despite Walker being shut down, the Spartans made it a game. A.J. Hoggard’s 3 cut the deficit to 58-55 and Michigan State managed to stay in that five-to-eight point window.
Mason Gillis essentially sealed the victory with a 3 with 56.3 seconds left. Lance Jones then snagged a steal on Michigan State’s ensuing possession.
Zach Edey watch
Tom Izzo chose to guard Edey with one defender last season in East Lansing. Edey scored 32 and had the game-winning basket in the final seconds.
Michigan State again opted to play Edey straight up for a lot of Saturday’s game, though help was there at times.
Edey again was able to dominate the Spartans, finishing with 32 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists.
3 stars
Braden Smith, Purdue: The sophomore point guard continues to solidify his legend status. Smith entered the game needing four assists to tie Bruce Parkinson’s single-season Purdue record of 207. Smith fell one assist shy, but made up for it with 23 points and 9 rebounds.
Fletcher Loyer, Purdue: The sophomore guard snapped out of a shooting funk. It probably began in the second half at Michigan on Sunday, but Loyer drained 3 of 5 3s in the first half and finished with 15 points, his most since scoring 19 at Indiana on Jan. 16.
Mason Gillis, Purdue: The senior forward wasn’t big in the scoring column, but his 3-pointer with 6:55 to go came when the Boilermakers had to have a bucket. Then, he delivered the dagger. Gillis’ ability to hit 3s also brought defenders to the 3-point line, opening the inside and Gillis was able to deposit post feeds. Gillis had 4 assists.
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on Twitter and Instagram @samueltking.
Michigan
Michigan trooper hospitalized after car hits patrol vehicle on Detroit’s west side
A Michigan State Police trooper is recovering after the patrol vehicle they were in was hit by a car on Detroit’s west side Sunday morning, the state agency said.
Troopers were investigating a fatal collision on Interstate 96 near Outer Drive when a crash involving a semitruck and an SUV happened at a nearby exit ramp, officials said.
The trooper who was hurt was sitting in the patrol car with its emergency lights on during the investigation into the exit ramp crash when the car hit the passenger side of the law enforcement vehicle, according to the state agency. The trooper was taken to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Officials said the driver of the car that hit the patrol vehicle, identified as a female of undisclosed age, refused medical treatment. Troopers determined while interviewing her that she was “impaired by both alcohol and narcotics,” according to the state agency.
The female was arrested and taken to the hospital for a blood draw, according to officials.
“Please slow down, focus on the roadway, move over for emergency vehicles,” Michigan State Police First Lieutenant Mike Shaw said in a written statement.
Charges against the female are pending.
Michigan
How to watch Michigan vs. Michigan State as the rivalry continues
Michigan and Michigan State conclude their regular seasons with another game in their long and intense men’s basketball rivalry.
Tip-off is Sunday at 4:30 p.m. at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, and the game will be televised by CBS.
No. 3 Michigan (28-2, 18-1 Big Ten) has already clinched the Big Ten regular-season championship outright, but No. 8 MSU (25-5, 15-4) will look to put a blemish on the Wolverines as both teams head to conference and NCAA Tournament play.
In the first meeting this season, Michigan prevailed 83-71 at the Breslin Center on Jan. 30, snapping a four-game losing streak in the series. It was UM’s first win in East Lansing since January 2018. Michigan’s Yaxel Lendeborg had 26 points and 12 rebounds, while Jeremy Fears Jr. scored a career-high 31 for the Spartans.
The Michigan vs. Michigan State rivalry began in 1909 and the Wolverines lead the all-time series 98-92.
Michigan State at Michigan
▶ Tipoff: 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Crisler Center, Ann Arbor
▶ TV/radio: CBS/760, 94.7
▶ Records: No. 3 Michigan 28-2, 18-1 Big Ten; No. 8 Michigan State 25-5, 15-4
▶ Outlook: This is the regular-season finale for both teams. Michigan won the first meeting, 83-71, on Jan. 30 in East Lansing and is seeking its first sweep since 2014. The Wolverines will celebrate senior day and their outright Big Ten regular-season title during a postgame ceremony.
More coverage
▶ Wolverines take aim at historic send-off for seniors: ‘They set the standard’
▶ ‘I need him’: How Dusty May’s comments drove Jeremy Fears Jr., Tom Izzo closer
▶ Michigan basketball gets first taste of life without guard L.J. Cason
▶ Jaxon Kohler shares MSU senior night with great-grandfather, Pearl Harbor vet
▶ Michigan basketball beats Iowa to complete rare Big Ten road feat
▶ Carr, Fears lead Spartans out of senior-night trap against Rutgers
▶ Michigan basketball chasing more milestones, history
▶ This is March: Michigan State basketball peaking as postseason looms
Michigan
EF-3 tornado moved through Southwest Michigan city, National Weather Service says
An EF-3 tornado moved through Union City, Michigan, during Friday night’s severe storms in the southwest part of the state, according to the National Weather Service.
The federal agency said three people were killed and 12 others were injured in the Branch County twister, which had a wind speed of at least 165 mph — just 1 mph shy of an EF-4 classification on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.
Several homes in the area of Tuttle Road and Prairie Rose Lane were severely damaged by the twister, according to the agency.
Officials said Saturday that only a small portion of the tornado’s possible track has been assessed and that other details, including how far it went and how long it lasted, “will be released as they become available.”
The last EF-3 tornado that touched down in Michigan was in Gaylord in 2022.
A twister was reported in Three Rivers, Michigan, on Friday, though the National Weather Service hasn’t confirmed the report. Three Rivers is around 30 miles southwest of Union City.
Sheriff Clint Roach of Cass County, which is around 30 miles west of Three Rivers, said a 12-year-old boy, identified as Silas Anderson, was killed in Friday’s storms.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Saturday on social media that she would be declaring a state of emergency for Branch, Cass and St. Joseph counties.
According to the Michigan State Police, the Salvation Army and the nonprofit Disaster Relief at Work were going door-to-door on Saturday with meals and cleaning supplies in Union City and Three Rivers.
Anyone who was impacted by Friday’s severe weather and needs resources is asked to call 211.
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