March Madness continued on Thursday and Friday, as the 2025 NCAA Tournament rolled into the Sweet 16. Four Big Ten teams were fortunate enough to qualify, though it was a tough outing for most of the squads.
Let’s take a look at what happened.
-No. 2 Michigan State Spartans 73, No. 6 Mississippi Rebels 70
The only Big Ten team to enter the Sweet 16 as a favorite was Michigan State and the Spartans lived up to that billing, eventually grabbing a three-point win on Friday night. However, there was plenty of drama to get there, as Ole Miss dominated most of the first half and was in control for sizable portions of the second half as well.
The difference proved to be freshman Jase Richardson, who kept hitting shot after shot and lifted the Spartans out of some tough moments. Richardson finished with 20 points and six rebounds. Coen Carr also had a nice showing with 15 points and three rebounds. Michigan State’s offense had an impressive showing, finishing with 1.14 points per possession, despite losing the turnover battle.
Michigan State improved to 30-6 overall with the win and the team will now move into the Elite Eight to face top seeded Auburn. The Tigers will be favored, but it could be a clash of styles that gives the Spartans an advantage on the boards. Michigan also held its own for much of the game against Auburn, which has to give Spartan fans some hope.
-No. 1 Florida Gators 87, No. 4 Maryland Terrapins 71
This was probably the most lopsided of the four games. Maryland played decently, but got into an early deficit and spent the rest of the evening playing catch up. Derik Queen was fantastic, finishing with 27 points and five rebounds, but the Terps only scored 1.0 points per possession, which was never going to be enough against a team like Florida.
The loss ends Maryland’s season at 27-9 overall. It was easily the best season for the program in nearly a decade and perhaps all the way back to the early 2000s. Still, the close losses down the stretch in the Big Ten and Kevin Willard’s likely exit will leave a sour taste in the mouths of Terp fans. Fans will hope they can find a way to regroup for next fall.
-No. 1 Auburn Tigers 78, No. 5 Michigan Wolverines 65
While this one looked like a mismatch on paper, Michigan entered with momentum and was playing its best basketball of the season. That carried over into this one, as the Wolverines jumped out to a fast start and controlled large portions of the game. With just over 12 minutes left, Michigan appeared to be in control. Unfortunately for the Wolverines, the team then gave up a 20-2 run, which effectively ended things. Danny Wolf led the way with 20 points and six rebounds. Vlad Goldin and Nimari Burnett also both had 10 points.
The loss dropped Michigan to 27-10 overall and ends a productive first season for Dusty May. The program finished 8-24 overall last season, improving its win total by 21 games in a single offseason and winning the Big Ten Tournament this March. It’s quite an accomplishment for May and his squad. We’ll have to see what he can do next year.
-No. 1 Houston Cougars 62, No. 4 Purdue Boilermakers 60
This was easily the most gutting game of the night for the league. Purdue played Houston down to the final buzzer, but fell short on a few controversial plays in the final moments. Miles Uzan scored the final bucket to give Houston the win. Fletcher Loyer led the way for the Boilers in the loss, finishing with 16 points and two rebounds. Braden Smith had 15 assists and seven points.
Purdue fell to 24-12 with the loss. It was a largely productive season in what figured to be a rebuilding year with the loss of Zach Edey. All told, it’s hard to complain much about 24 wins and a Sweet 16 appearance, though it always felt like just an extra break or two would have made this a season to remember.
