chicago — For Michigan State, this one will leave a mark. Because Dent and UCLA aren’t gone yet.
In a battle of possession and paint, third-seeded Michigan State lost 88-84 on Friday to UCLA point guard Donovan Dent, who had 23 points and 12 assists in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals. Michigan State came within two points in the final minute, but failed to complete its comeback after falling behind by 15 points in the second half.
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Although the game ended in a loss, point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. scored 21 points and dished out 13 assists for Michigan State (25-6), surpassing Cassius Winston for the MSU single-season assist record (294) and counting. He hit a historic lob to Carson Cooper with 1:37 left in the game.
Kur Teng and Carson Cooper each scored 13 points, Coen Carr added 12, and the Spartans outrebounded the Bruins 34-26, led 23-6 on second-chance points and 24-9 on bench points.
Dent had a triple-double, scoring 23 points for UCLA (22-10) in Thursday’s third-round win over Rutgers, and guard Trent Perry added 22 points. UCLA shot 7 of 13 from 3-point range and led by 11 points at halftime. The Bruins will face seventh-seeded Purdue in the Big Ten semifinals on Saturday at approximately 3:30 p.m. ET.
Michigan State Spartans’ No. 1 player Jeremy Fears Jr. scores a layup against the UCLA Bruins during the first half of the 2026 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament quarterfinals at the United Center on March 13, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois.
The first-game loss was Michigan State’s first in the Big Ten Tournament since 2023, which coincidentally was last played at the United Center.
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Trailing 44-33 at halftime, Michigan State was unable to take the lead against UCLA, which played the second half without Tyler Bilodeau after injuring his right knee in the first half.
With 15:11 left in the game, Skyy Clark stood up and drained a 3-pointer over Fears to give UCLA a game-high 15 points lead, 54-39.
That seemed to wake up Michigan State. The three-pointers of Kurt Teng and Trey Ford, who came off the bench, and the guidance of Phils, led to a 10-2 climax. After UCLA stabilized, Ford continued to add.
When UCLA needed answers, Dent provided them. With 11:33 left, he drove into the lane, as he had done all game, and fired a floater over Cooper, drawing a foul on the way. This pushed UCLA’s lead back to double digits at 61-51.
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Carr had two dunks during the under-12 timeout, one off a pass from Fiers and one off a strong dribble to control the ball. UCLA struggled to keep up in the paint as they were depleted by Bilodeau’s injury and Xavier Booker’s four fouls. Or outside. Ford hit his second three-pointer to bring the score to 63-58, Clark tied him, and then Kohler hit a three-pointer to bring the score to five points. When UCLA called timeout and Kohler walked toward the huddle, he and Tom Izzo roared enthusiastically.
Dent is at it again. During that regroup, he drained a corner 3-pointer for Perry, then stepped back himself on a tip-in from Jordan Scott, who was playing backup point guard in the second half.
Trailing 72-61, Michigan State missed three 3-pointers in the same possession and was unable to convert its efforts on the offensive glass into points.
After 3 minutes and 42 seconds, with MSU without a shot, Carr broke through and dunked, drawing Booker’s fifth foul, sending his old MSU teammate to the UCLA bench and putting his Spartans in better shape before subbing out.
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After Perry made another 3-pointer, Scott went on a 5-0 run to chase the point difference to 7 points. Fiers’ assists tied the MSU single-season record of 291 set by Cassius Winston as a junior in 2018-19. With 2 minutes and 30 seconds left in the game, his own three-pointer made the score 75-71, and the comeback was within reach.
Clark hit Scott with a three-pointer in the corner to maintain control. Fiers then threw an alley-oop to Carson Cooper to pass Winston and reach 292 assists on the season.
With 43.1 seconds left in the game and trailing by 5 seconds, Teng Pump faked a three-pointer that bounced high off the rim. In the end, Michigan State won 80-78 and had a chance to turn a historic game into a victory.
Late-game execution allowed UCLA to stay in control, although Dent missed a one-on-one opportunity that set up Michigan State with a chance. With 12.1 seconds left in the game, the referees reviewed a play in which Jordan Scott fouled Perry and Perry grabbed Scott’s chin. Review came back clean. Perry hit the ball in front of a hostile crowd.
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Fiers went for a layup with six seconds left and was hit in the face by Perry’s elbow, sending him sprawling on the court. Without any comment, Perry made two free throws with 5.1 seconds left to maintain the lead. Dent intercepted Scott’s pass down the field to seal MSU’s loss.
Stats: Michigan State vs. UCLA
Jordan Scott hit a 3-pointer to give Michigan State a 6-5 lead with three minutes to play, and he blocked UCLA point guard Donovan Dent on the other end. Fifty seconds later, Michigan State added another highlight. When Fiers sprints in transition, he pauses for his usual mid-range jump shot instead of opting for a lob. When Carson Cooper and Coen Carr both rushed to the cup, Cooper delayed the game and Carr rushed into a reverse jam that sent the United Center into a roar. He hit a three-pointer at 4:56 to make the score 12-8.
The lead didn’t stay. UCLA went on an 8-2 run to regain the lead with 11:51 to play, with Clark and Bilodeau contributing and Dent guiding the charge. Perry and Fiers exchanged three-pointers, and Perry’s second three-pointer extended UCLA’s lead to five points. Clark hit a long two-pointer with 8:35 left in the game to lead 26-18.
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Following Fiers’ 3-pointer, MSU missed four jump shots in three minutes, but Ward made a layup under the basket before falling to the ground at 7:32, and the 26-20 deficit was now more manageable.
However, Michigan State couldn’t get closer at halftime, and untimely turnovers continued to cause problems. Jordan Scott’s poor pass to Carr, the freshman’s third goal of the half, led to a driving layup by UCLA’s Dailey at 6:51, and his next shot extended the deficit to 10 points. He and Dent combined for 12 points and 7 assists in the first half alone and proved to be the deciding factor.
With 3 minutes and 33 seconds left before halftime, Bilodeau led 35-23 when he sprained his right knee while guarding Cooper under the basket and was helped down the tunnel by his coach. Booker, who came off the bench for UCLA, picked up his second foul of the half while Perry (two fouls) and guard Eric Freeney (three) minded their fouls.
Cronin was frustrated during a halftime interview, expressing his feelings to the Big Ten Network and taking an apparent swipe at fellow Michigan State player Tom Izzo.
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“We were just playing basketball,” Cronin said. “It’s hard to do 8-on-5. I’m not in the Hall of Fame, but we’ll do our best.”
Michigan State University went on a 6-0 run to narrow the score gap to 38-31. UCLA then responded, with Daly’s three-pointer with 29 seconds left helping the team complete half of the drive.
This is a development story. Check detroit news network for updates.
cearegood@detroitnews.com
@ConnorEaregood
This article originally appeared in The Detroit News: Michigan State basketball loses to UCLA in Big Ten tournament