Freshman Griffey bright spot in loss to No. 7 Michigan State

Illinois’ Brandon Paul, right, shoots as Michigan State’s Durrell Summers (15) and Draymond Green defend during the first half of a game Saturday in East Lansing, Mich.
Al Goldis

There may be four freshmen on the Illinois basketball team, but guards D.J. Richardson and Brandon Paul have stolen much of the spotlight early in the season. That wasn’t the case in East Lansing, Mich., on Saturday, though, as Illinois (12-6, 4-1 Big Ten) fell 73-63 to No. 7 Michigan State (15-3, 5-0).

With Richardson, who averages 10.4 points a game, and Paul both held to just two points each, it was Tyler Griffey who shined at the Breslin Center.

Illinois head coach Bruce Weber recognized the freshman’s 12-point, seven-rebound performance after the game.

“Our freshmen struggled, but our upperclassmen also struggled, so that’s a problem here playing a team like this,” Weber said. “I would say one positive is Tyler Griffey, our freshman, got an opportunity and took advantage of it and played pretty well. And (he) probably deserves a little extra time next outing.”

It wasn’t just Weber who was watching Griffey. Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo admitted he was surprised by more than one Illini on the afternoon.

“They had a couple of guys that played well that we didn’t expect,” Izzo said. “The kid, (Tyler) Griffey, I thought was great. (Dominique Keller) brings some energy to that team, and those are some big lifts.”

But Griffey’s performance came on the heels of a bigger problem for the Fighting Illini, as junior center Mike Tisdale was plagued by foul trouble early and limited to just 19 minutes. Tisdale’s fouls led Weber to admit he has questions about the calls against his big man.

“Sometimes, I’ll be honest, I wonder what post defense is, and Mike’s got to learn to deal with it,” Weber said. “But if they’re just going to let them push and shove from behind the whole time, it makes it really tough on him.”

Tisdale’s offensive numbers took a hit too, as the 7-foot-1 center who entered the game averaging 20.3 points in Big Ten play was held to just two points all afternoon.

For the Spartans, guarding Tisdale was key to Izzo’s game plan, and the foul trouble only helped. Michigan State sophomore forward Delvon Roe considered Tisdale’s lack of offensive performance a good sign for his squad.

“That was a big deal for us,” Roe said. “We wanted to make sure we came out (Saturday) with a statement that we can guard big men, and that’s what we did. That really set the tempo for us.”

Tisdale wasn’t the only Illini to struggle against the Spartans, as junior guard Demetri McCamey, junior forward Mike Davis and Griffey were the only players to score in double figures.

“The freshmen have their struggles, but we got to know what we are getting each time from the upperclassmen,” Weber said. “You may not make shots, but you’ve got to do all the other stuff. I thought we had some turnovers, hustle plays, and it makes a big difference. You know, we don’t get guys to put the ball in the hoop.”

Michigan State had an answer for the Illinois defense in the form of junior guard Kalin Lucas, who had a game-high 20 points.

“I thought in some ways it was one of his best games because he did things that great point guards have to do,” Izzo said. “The one thing he did do all night when I could keep him on McCamey, he did a decent job on him. I thought his defense was the steadiest of all our guards.”

Now in the midst of a challenging conference schedule, Weber considers Tuesday’s game against Purdue a test of his squad’s progress. After Saturday, Griffey may have written a bigger role for himself in that journey.

“We talked about how we were playing the best (during) this stretch, in the league, to see if we were ready for it. Obviously (Saturday) we weren’t,” Weber said.

“We’ve got to find ways. It’s good Tyler came in and gave us something. Maybe he’s a guy that can help us out and get us through some scoring droughts.”