Michigan State and the rowdy Breslin Center crowd proved to be a bit too much for the short-handed Villanova Wildcats, who made the most out of who they had, despite missing Cam Whitmore and Justin Moore.
After a shaky start, the ‘Cats dug deep in the final minutes, giving the Spartans a scare and nearly stealing the game, but their comeback attempt fell short, as Michigan State hung on for a 73-71 win after a last-second heave by Eric Dixon was off the mark.
Villanova, who trailed by double digits with 4:52 to go, went on a run that capitalized on a couple of injuries to A.