Behind Miles Bridges nad Lourawls "Tum Tum" Nairn, the Michigan State Spartans edged Wichita State 77-72 yesterday in the Battle 4 Atlantis third game.

Behind 21 points from freshman Miles Bridges, the Michigan State Spartans edged Wichita State 77-72 yesterday in the Battle 4 Atlantis third-place game.

Sophomore guard Eron Harris, Nick Ward and Matt Mcquaid all finished with 13 points each. Hometown hero Lourawls "Tum Tum" Nairn also dished out a career-high 12 assists in the win.

"We did a good job of moving the ball around," said Nairn. "A lot of the passes were created due to penetration, and I think everyone just did a good job of finding the open spots on the court and knocking down their shots."

Although they came out with the win, the Spartans nearly blew an 18-point lead with fewer than 10 minutes left in the game.

"There are a lot of good things to take away from this game, and also some not so good things," said Spartans head coach Tom Izzo.

"We tested a lot of oaur guys during the tournament, and they answered the bell to an extent. We experimented with a lot of lineups, some of which were a bit weird. But I think overall, the guys played hard and I think this trip allowed us to see where we are.

"However, if slipping a bit to a good team while we are undermanned is our biggest problem, I think we are in business."

Wichita State disrupted the Spartans offense with a fierce full court press to get back in the game. Building off that momentum, the Shockers ran off a 14-0 run to get to 66-65 on a layup by Dashion Smith.

Bridges and freshman guard Cassius Winston hit some clutch free throws down the stretch, allowing the Spartans to hold on to their lead (75-72).

With one more chance left to tie it in the final seconds, Smith launched a straightaway three from the top of the key, but failed to connect. Bridges grabbed the rebound and hit two clinching free throws with 4.7 seconds left.

Forward Darral Willis led the Shockers with 16 points.

With the win, Michigan State moved to 4-3 on the season, while the Shockers fell to 5-2.

The Spartans will take a short break before they're back in action again on Tuesday to take on No.1 Duke. As for the Shockers, they'll be in action as well on Tuesday, against Southern Nazarene.

Randy Smith, Guardian Sports Reporter

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