Michigan State falls to Kansas State in Sweet Sixteen overtime thriller

NEW YORK (WILX) - The Michigan State Spartans’ season is over.

The Spartans fell to Kansas State in the Sweet 16, 98-93 in overtime.

Wildcat Guard Markquis Nowell scored a tournament record 19 assists, along with 20 points, including a layup to seal it at the final buzzer.

It was fitting that a game played at that high of a level went down in the world’s most famous arena, and one of the better tournament performances ever seen from Nowell.

The Spartans went blow-for-blow for nearly all 12 rounds, but couldn’t find their breath one final time.

Kansas State was hitting threes from all over (11-24) and had MSU all out of sorts defensively for much of the night.

The Spartans somehow erased a five-point deficit to force overtime, and it felt like it just make enough stops defensively to pull it out with a late two-point lead.

But MSU mustered just one point the final 1:47 and Nowell was really good in closing time to put things away.

MSU Head Coach Tom Izzo will certainly want some plays back for his team especially at the end of regulation, but he could not have been prouder of the way his team battled all year long.

“I’m proud as hell of my team,” Izzo said. “I really am, and I don’t I don’t throw flowers out, I’m not very good at that and I don’t you know, I’m a glass quarter full, we all know that, but I mean to keep coming back down. They hit a three then, you could have quit, but we bounced back and I really believed we were gonna win the game. I don’t know why I just thought destiny was on our side, but give them credit they they made a couple plays at the end to win it.”

Extremely proud of every guy,” said Joey Hauser, the graduate forward scored 18 points to go with six rebounds. “Yeah, I mean just it’s so fresh right now that this it sucks. But, you know every guy in this team gave everything they got, that’s what makes it so emotional and so tough when you lose a game like that.”

It’s kind of ironic because...it’s probably one of my favorite games that I’ve had here,” said senior forward Malik Hall (13 pts, 8 reb.), “not necessarily like for any specific reason. I think we just everybody here wanted to win so badly, and I feel like you could feel it and it was just top moment just to be out here with everyone in this locker room, you know, they’re so amazing amazing teammates amazing people and I just I’m happy I got to experience it.”

This is a developing story. Stay with WILX for updates from New York.

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