For the second straight season after consecutive trips before that, the Michigan State Spartans will not be playing in the Elite Eight this year after being defeated by the No. 4 Louisville Cardinals on Thursday night in the Sweet 16, 57-44.
While both offenses were mightily inefficient in the first half, Louisville found some success in the second by hitting over 50 percent of their shots (Louisville was only 27 percent from the field in the first). Michigan State, however, continued to shoot below 30 percent for much of the second half and found itself down double digits before managing to cross the 30-percent mark. They finished the game at 29 percent from the field.
The Big Ten player of the year, Draymond Green, struggled, hitting only 5-of-16 shots and finishing with 13 points. The Spartans turned it over 15 times and had seven of their shots blocked by Louisville's Gorgui Dieng.
Louisville will now play the winner of the Marquette-Florida game.
You can find more about the Michigan State Spartans at The Only Colors. For more coverage of the 2012 NCAA tournament, visit SB Nation Detroit's StoryStream. Also, make sure to check out SB Nation's NCAA tournament hub and our printable NCAA tournament bracket.
