Coming into Wednesday night’s matchups, Michigan State was tied with rival Michigan at 13-3 on top of the Big Ten standings. They had a tough road matchup at No. 16 Maryland, a team that still had an outside shot at sharing a regular-season title.
It was a game played at the Spartans pace, with the teams combining for just 45 total points in the first half. The game remained a slugfest all the way to the final minute. In a sloppy game overall, Maryland tied it up with just seconds to go. The game was set to go to overtime, but sophomore guard Tre Holloman had other plans.
TRE HOLLOMAN AT THE BUZZER FROM HALF COURT!! #8 MICHIGAN STATE WINS!!!!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/RjBzIzd47b
— NCAA Buzzer Beaters & Game Winners (@NCAABuzzerBters) February 27, 2025
That buzzer-beater gave Michigan State the 58-55 victory to for now, be alone on top of the Big Ten at 14-3. It was a great ending to an otherwise rough game for Holloman, who had nine points on 3/12 FG shooting off the bench in 20 minutes. But as he’s shown throughout the season, he can make the plays that matter.
The halfcourt buzzer-beater we saw is going to be one of the best shots of the entire 2024-25 season. That’s due to how important that game was. Had the game gone into overtime and the Spartans had lost, Michigan would’ve been in the driver’s seat. With Wisconsin and Iowa on the road after this game, there was a chance the Spartans would’ve needed to beat Michigan on the final day of the regular season to win the regular-season title.
Instead, the Spartans should be viewed as the clear favorites to get that and the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament. Plus, this elite Quad 1 road win will only improve a resume that could be worth a top-4 protected seed in the Big Dance. Michigan State has been one of the biggest surprises of the season and the surprise game-winning shot from Holloman continues that.