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It wasn’t pretty, and almost became a complete disaster, but the Spartans knocked off Ferris State 80-72 in last night’s exhibition game.
Scary moment in Michigan State's first exhibition game as Miles Bridges takes a hard fall.
— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) October 27, 2017
He hasn't returned to the game as of halftime: pic.twitter.com/tPFF3bToNS
With around 7:30 left in the first half, Michigan State star Miles Bridges attempted to close out on the perimeter when he went over Ferris State’s Jaylin McFadden. The contact led to Bridges coming down on the court hard, appearing to be injured. Fortunately for the Spartans, the incident wasn’t serious and Bridges returned to play in the second half with no noticeable issues from the fall.
If Bridges had been seriously injured, it would have been a disaster for the Spartans. Without Bridges this team is definitely going to be a strong team, but they wouldn’t be the same team capable of contending for a national title.
As for their exhibition game against Ferris State, Michigan State still has some work to do. While they ended up knocking off their opponent, the Spartans did trail at the break and the game was tied with just over six minutes left. It’s an exhibition game so the focus is typically elsewhere, like working on rotations and getting new players up and running, but it was still a slow start in East Lansing. Part of that was likely due to a poor shooting performance, with the Spartans shooting 34.7% from the field and 25.9% from three.
Leading the way for State was Cassius Winston, who had 26 points and 5 assists. Miles Bridges struggled from outside, hitting 1 of 6 three pointers, but still had 19 points and 6 rebounds in 29 minutes. The only other Spartan to reach double figures was Jaren Jackson Jr., who added 14 points and 8 rebounds in 21 minutes.
It wasn’t pretty, especially considering Ferris State is a Division II opponent, but the Spartans ended up with the victory. Even more importantly, Bridges appears to be healthy after a near scare in the first half.
Michigan State’s next outing will be this Sunday when they face Georgia in Grand Rapids for a charity exhibition. The Spartans will then host Hillsdale on the 3rd before tipping off the season on the 10th against North Florida.