by TYLER HATHAWAY
BUFFALO, N.Y– Carson Cooper put together 20 points and 11 rebounds while Jeremy Fears Jr. dished out 11 assists, and No. 3 seed Michigan State used big run in the first half to help take down No. 14 seed North Dakota State 92-67 during NCAA Tournament First Round action at the KeyBank Center on Thursday.
“I thought it was one of the more complete games we’ve played,” said head coach Tom Izzo. “We shot the ball well, we had a few turnovers but in general (we played well).”
After the teams traded baskets to open the game, the Spartans used a 16-2 run out of a media timeout to build a lead it wouldn’t lose. Fears picked up six assists on Michigan State’s first eight makes and was guiding the offense all afternoon.
“I was just adjusting and seeing how they were guarding our pick and roll, how they were guarding me,” said the guard on his mindset running the offense. “My guys got open, so I was just making sure I was able to get them the ball in the right spots. They did the hard part of scoring and finishing. I trust them. I know they’re gonna make the right play whether I pass to them and they pass to someone else and we get a bucket, or they score.”
VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM JEROME DAVIS.
Cooper scored 14 of his points in the first 20 minutes. The senior has been with Michigan State all four years of his college career.
“I think he went from liking the game to loving the game,” Izzo said of his center’s development. “You get what you deserve, you get what you earn, you get what you work for. Coop has gotten better, once he couldn’t make a free throw, he couldn’t make a jump hook. Now he has a variety of shots, the lobs with him and Jeremy. He’s just a really good athlete for a kid that size and it’s been fun to watch him grow.”
Many of his buckets came off of finds from Fears, including an and-one lob that gave the Spartans a 12-point lead midway through the first half.
“I know where Coop is gonna be, Coop knows where I’m gonna be,” Fears said of the connection with his center. “I can throw it to him with my eyes closed and I know he’ll catch it.”
“With us playing together for three years, it’s gotten better every year,” Cooper said of the chemistry. “Now the fact that we’re kind of at the end of our college career together, we’re kind of hitting our best strides.”
It wasn’t just the offense that was rolling early. The defense held the Bison to 33% from the floor and 13% from three-point range in the first half as the Spartans ran out to a 45-25 lead.
“We had a couple games down the stretch towards the end of the season where we gave up a lot of buckets, especially early (in games),” said Fears. “Teams get going, they make shots, they get a lot of confidence. We just wanted to come in and have the defensive mindset of just trying to make it hard for everybody.”
“That’s all we were talking about was getting off to a strong defensive start,” said Cooper.
Freshman Cam Ward came off the bench and provided 13 points while going a perfect 6-for-6 from the field.
“Cam played awesome,” said Cooper. “I told him it’s okay to be nervous in these situations. You grow up and you watch these games and you dream about playing in these games. I told him to take in the moment and take in where you are and accept it and be grateful for where you’re at. Once he did that it kind of helped him calm down a little bit, not overthink it as much and just play his game.”
Coen Carr added 17 points, four rebounds, and two assists. Jaxon Kohler knocked down three three-pointers and totaled 12 points.
For the Bison, Damari Wheeler-Thomas turned in a team-high 16 points. It was the fifth tournament appearance in program history for North Dakota State.
It’s the 60th career NCAA tournament win in the illustrious career of hall-of-famer Tom Izzo.
“It’s special,” Fears said about playing for his coach. “It’s not every day that you get a great person and a great leader who shows up and teaches you how to keep getting better, whether it’s on the court or off the court. These three years have been special for me just having someone I can look up to every day.”
Michigan State advances to face No. 6 seed Louisville in the Round of 32 on Saturday.
“My radio guy said to me you looked like a team that played desperate,” Izzo explained. “That’s a great thing man. If we can play desperate on Saturday I’d be happy.”
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