Neitzel, Lucas lead Spartans over Panthers
DENVER -- All this talk about brawn and brute force gets old. Drew Neitzel and Kalin Lucas let everyone know these Michigan State guys can dribble and shoot it too.
The Spartans guards went on a late ballhandling and scoring spree to help Michigan State pull away from Pittsburgh for a 65-54 victory Saturday night in a South Regional second-round game.
Lucas and Neitzel combined for 21 of the final 25 points for the fifth-seeded Spartans to help them win a battle of the bullies.
Neitzel led the Spartans with 21 points, and Lucas finished with 19.
Levance Fields had 19 points for fourth-seeded Pittsburgh (27-10).
Leading by one, Neitzel scored eight straight points to give Michigan State (27-8) a five-point lead with four minutes left.
“I just wanted to be aggressive,” Neitzel said. “That’s what this team needs from me. Coach has been preaching that.”
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