Freshman Cameron Ward had 18 points and 10 rebounds off the bench as No. 22 Michigan State held off No. 14 Arkansas, 69-66, in East Lansing, Michigan, on Saturday night.
Coen Carr provided 15 points and seven rebounds for Michigan State (2-0), while Jaxon Kohler added 10 points with seven rebounds.
Darius Acuff Jr. and Meleek Thomas had 16 points each for the Razorbacks (1-1). DJ Wagner scored 13 points.
Neither team led by more than six points in the first half. Acuff led Arkansas with 10 points as the Razorbacks reached the break with a 39-36 lead.
Thomas had nine points in the first half, while Wagner and Billy Richmond III each contributed eight. Ward and Carr led the Spartans, who missed all seven of their 3-point attempts, with 12 points each. Michigan State lived in the paint, outscoring Arkansas 26-16 in that area.
A pair of inside buckets from Kohler during a 7-1 Michigan State spurt gave the Spartans a 45-42 lead with 16:28 to play.
Their lead continued to fluctuate between three and five points until Cooper converted an alley-oop pass from Jeremy Fears Jr. to make the score 59-53. Carr pushed the lead to eight points with a pair of free throws.
Arkansas reduced the gap with a dunk from Malique Ewin on a pass from Acuff and a Thomas 3-pointer. Thomas then fed Nick Pringle for a dunk with 2:43 left to bring the Razorbacks within one at 66-65.
Following a Michigan State turnover, Pringle split free throws to tie the game. Cooper then split free throws with 1:21 left to put the Spartans back on top.
Cooper blocked an Acuff shot on Arkansas’ next possession. Fears then made two free throws to give the Spartans a 69-66 lead. Thomas missed two shots, forcing Pringle to foul Jordan Scott, who missed both free throws.
Acuff and Trevor Brazile missed their 3-point attempts in the final five seconds.
–Field level media
