Frustrations get best of Hoosiers in first Big Ten loss

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- As the Michigan State lead swelled throughout the second half, IU's frustration only mounted.\nOn this night, the cooler heads would prevail.\nAmong the seemingly endless string of Hoosier frustrations were reach-in fouls, verbal spats and continuous loose balls bouncing into awaiting Spartan arms. But perhaps nothing was as continually agonizing for the Hoosiers as the multiple Spartan shots that dropped as the shot clock buzzer sounded.\n"(Those were) mental lapses," junior guard Earl Calloway said. "That's something we've got to work on -- playing team defense."\nThe shot clock frustration seemed to boil over midway through the second half when Michigan State's Drew Neitzel held the ball at the top of the key with less than five seconds remaining on the shot clock. The IU defenders, in a zone at the time, got crossed up in their assignments and Neitzel was able to streak to the bucket and lay in an easy score as the horn sounded.\n"When (the clock) gets down it means you're playing good steady defense," Calloway said. "But for them to come out and get a shot, that takes a toll on us because 30 seconds is a lot of time to waste."\nUnfortunately, the shot clock represented only a sliver of the IU irritations in the second half.\nAt one point in the second period, with the game still within reach, IU turned to a trap defense and pinned Michigan State along the sideline. Calloway pried the ball loose for what appeared to be a timely Hoosier steal. But by the time the Hoosier guard turned to run, a whistle blew and the referee signaled that Calloway had stepped out of bounds. Not only was the turnover scratched, but Michigan State received a fresh shot clock and made IU pay by extending the lead to eight on the ensuing possession.\n"That's just part of game I guess," junior guard Rod Wilmont said. "They were getting loose balls and we were picking up fouls while we're trying to get back in it. It's hard, but you've got to play through it -- especially on the road."\nFor Wilmont, loose balls may have been less of a concern than a slew of second-half fouls. The junior guard was called for three quick infractions, taking him from foul trouble to fouled out as the game moved further out of IU's reach.\n"That's the road," freshman Ben Allen said. "It is hard, but we've really got to shut that out of our minds and play our game. Let the referees worry about themselves and just officiate the game."\nThe pinnacle scene of frustration, however, may have come when senior forward Marco Killingsworth and Michigan State's Paul Davis stood toe-to-toe after a Killingsworth foul. The altercation was separated quickly, but gave rise to both benches and incited an already raucous Michigan State home crowd.\nBoth men took seats on the bench to cool off, but on this night, it was the collectively cool Spartans that managed to walk away victorious while, like Killingsworth, the Hoosiers were left watching.