Gutsy 'M' rally falls short, 80-75

Reid's shot misses in final seconds

EAST LANSING - Murphy's Law had nothing on the Michigan basketball team last night. And in the end, the Wolverines could not overcome everything that had gone wrong for them.

Despite the absence of an injured Maceo Baston, the early departure of their other big man, Robert Traylor, who fouled out with 6:37 still remaining in the game, and a fast start by Michigan State in front of a rowdy green-and-white crowd inspired by pre-game pep talks from former Spartans Earvin "Magic" Johnson and Greg Kelser, the Wolverines did everything they could to put themselves in position for a miracle finish.

No. 22 Michigan, after trailing by as much as 15 in the second half, trailed by three, 78-75, with 17.4 seconds left in the game. But a 3-point attempt by Michigan's Robbie Reid bounced off the rim with time running out and No. 14 Michigan State went on to an 80-75 win in front of 15,138 at Breslin Center.

MARGARET MYERS/Daily There was magic in the air when former Spartan and NBA star Earvin "Magic" Johnson stirred up the Breslin Center crowd before last night's game. With the 80-75 victory, Michigan State broke a five-game losing streak against the Wolverines.

"We dug ourselves such a big hole in the first half," Michigan coach Brian Ellerbe said. "It made it very difficult to finish the comeback we made."

The final shot was designed to go to sharpshooter Louis Bullock, Reid said.

"We had a triple-pick designed for Lou to come up the middle, but I thought the time was running down and I thought I had the shot. So, I took it."

Bullock led all scorers with 26, followed by a career-high 22 points from Jerod Ward. Traylor added 21 but only grabbed five boards. Overall, Michigan was outrebounded 41-25, leading to 25 second-chance points for the Spartans - compared to Michigan's seven.

The game was truly a tale of two halves. The Spartans (12-2 Big Ten, 19-5 overall) outshot, outrebounded and flat-out outplayed Michigan (8-5, 18-8) in the first half.

While the Wolverines struggled to get the ball inside to Traylor - three of Traylor's eight shots were long-range jumpers - Bullock, a 91-percent free-throw shooter, somehow missed both of his attempts from the line and the Spartans erupted behind point guard Mateen Cleaves' six points and, more importantly - six assists. Michigan State led by as many as 18 en route to a 44-29 halftime advantage.

But Traylor almost singlehandedly got the Wolverines back into the game in the second half before fouling out. The Michigan center scored 12 consecutive points for the Wolverines early in the second half as Michigan used a 12-2 run to cut Michigan State's lead to five with 11:13 to go.

Traylor would soon foul out, leaving Michigan with virtually no inside presence. But Bullock kept the Wolverines close with 12 points in the final 4:55 of the game, including a high-arching, rainbow 3-pointer from 24 feet that made the score 75-71 with 1:16 remaining and made Michigan State coach Tom Izzo laugh out loud.

"I got to admit," Izzo said. "I think Bullock hit some shots that were unbelievable."

It was a Michigan State 3-pointer, however, that proved to be the nail in the Wolverines' coffin. With 2:05 left in the game and Michigan trailing by two, Jason Klein highlighted a 17-point performance with a trey from the left corner, giving the Spartans a 73-68 lead.

Michigan fell behind early in the first half. With the game tied at five, Antonio Smith beat the Michigan defense down the floor and laid it in despite being fouled by Traylor. After Smith converted the three-point play, the Wolverines turned the ball over on their next possession and Cleaves hit from beyond the arc to give the Spartans a 10-5 lead.

A 3-pointer by Bullock from way out cut the Spartans' lead to 10-8. But the Spartans countered with a 12-2 run, extending their lead to 12.

The frantic opening pace slowed down a bit as the Wolverines closed the gap again midway through the first half. A 3-pointer by Bullock and a basket by Traylor - only his second of the game - cut the Michigan deficit to eight.

But the Spartans took advantage of a series of poor defensive plays underneath by the Wolverines to take a 31-17 lead. The Spartans maintained that advantage for the rest of the half and went to the lockerroom with a 44-29 halftime lead.

02-18-98