Trey Burke Leads Michigan Past Michigan State
by Gautham Nagesh
University of Michigan freshman point guard Trey Burke faced a tall task before the season: replace Lakers rookie and burgeoning playmaker Darius Morris in the backcourt for the ascendant Wolverines. Roughly halfway through the season, Burke has done his best to make Morris just a memory, leading Michigan past the hated Spartans 60-59 at Crisler Arena in a thrilling contest.
Tuesday was billed as a matchup of multi-talented swingmen, with Draymond Green of Michigan State and Tim Hardaway Jr. of Michigan expected to play the marquee roles. But Green missed an off-balance jumper to win the game at the buzzer and it was senior sharpshooter Stu Douglas who scored the winning basket for the Wolverines on a fast-break outlet from Burke. The Columbus, Ohio native drew two defenders before leaning back to dish the ball to Douglas for the winning basket.
The late surge from Michigan came in response to a second-half run that saw the Spartans climb back from a double-digit deficit to take the lead. After leading for the entire first half, the Wolverines went cold after the break, while Austin Thornton and Travis Trice hit crucial jumpers to pull MSU back into the game. Michigan State received useful contributions from junior center Derrick Nix, who looks like a new man after dropping weight and almost leaving the team last year.
But Spartan point guard Keith Appling’s inability to respond in the late-going condemned Tom Izzo’s team to its third straight loss to their biggest rival. The sophomore was bested by Burke repeatedly when going head-to-head. Appling was overshadowed at times in high school by Nix, but since erupting in the Michigan State Championship game as a junior, he has been recognized as one of the most explosive scorers to come out of the Detroit Public School League in years.
Izzo has publicly put his faith in Appling, but it looks like he may have to get used to coming up short against Burke over the next few years. While Appling may be more effective at penetrating, Burke’s sweet stroke and limitless range make him deadly from the outside and his passing instincts appear superior as well. Combined with Hardaway Jr. he gives U of M its most talented backcourt in recent memory, likely surpassing the Manny Harris-Darius Morris combination that brought Michigan back to primetime.
Michigan’s thrilling victory erases the aftertaste of the drubbing they suffered against Iowa on Saturday and serves as the best notch on their belt so far this season. The Spartans are a top ten team and will likely remain so at the end of the year, making the win a crucial boost to the Wolverines’ potential seeding in the NCAA tournament.
Michigan State will doubtless be looking for revenge in East Lansing on February 5th; if Michigan can somehow escape the Breslin Center with a win, then it would be fair to say parity has finally returned to the state’s biggest rivalry after years of one-sided dominance by the men in green and white.