15^th-ranked MichiganState avoided an upset at home Sunday afternoon as the Spartans squeaked past Louisiana-Lafayette 63-to-60 at the Breslin Center. Keith Appling scored 19 points and Branden Dawson had 12 for   M-S-U. Appling also added six rebounds and five assists, while Dawson's inability to seal the win with free throws gave Louisiana an  opportunity to tie the game. Down 10 with 3:09 remaining, the Ragin' Cajuns closed to within 62-60 inside the final minute. Dawson went to the line with six seconds to play. He made the first attempt but missed the second. The Spartans, though, prevailed when Louisiana’s deep 3-point try was off the mark  MichiganState, with its fifth straight win, improved to 5-and-1 with its next game coming up Wednesday night at Miami, Florida in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge.

Also yesterday, top-ranked Indiana had no trouble blasting Ball State 101-to-53 at Bloomington with the Hoosier’s record now 6-and-0.