Kritik und Lob » 2, 6-1 in the second round after comp

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas -- Michigan State spent the first 30 minutes playing with energy and building a huge lead, then the last 10 nearly giving it all away.Still, the 24th-ranked Spartans came away from the Battle 4 Atlantis with a win -- and the end of a brutally tough opening month of the schedule in sight.Miles Bridges scored 21 points to help Michigan State hold off Wichita State 77-72 on Friday in the Battle 4 Atlantis third-place game.Eron Harris added 13 points for the Spartans (4-3), who bounced back from Thursdays loss to No. 20 Baylor in a game that left coach Tom Izzo saying his injury-hit team looked awfully tired and maybe a bit overwhelmed by the early schedule.Theres no question that this team has been through a lot, Izzo said. But thats what I challenged them with. I dont challenge them with effort, heart, I dont challenge them very often with character issues. But I did challenge their character a little bit.Izzo said he sensed great focus from his players Friday morning.The most important thing is finding a way to get off the mat, he said. That is the most important lesson I can teach these guys whether it be in life or in basketball.Michigan State led by 18 midway through the half and held a 15-point lead with 8:05 left, only to see the Shockers (5-2) turn to fullcourt pressure to get back in it. Wichita State ran off a 14-0 run to get to 66-65 on Daishon Smiths layup over Bridges with 4:13 left.We got stops, Smith said. We were able to put our athleticism into the game, and thats what we did.But the Shockers couldnt quite push ahead. Bridges and fellow freshman Cassius Winston hit key 3-pointers. And when the Shockers had one more chance to tie it, Smith missed a long straightaway 3.Bridges grabbed the rebound and hit two clinching free throws with 4.7 seconds left.Darral Willis scored 16 points to lead Wichita State, which shot 36 percent.BIG PICTUREWichita State: As bad as things looked midway through the second half, the Shockers showed a downright scary fullcourt press to get back in it. Coach Gregg Marshall has tried to talk more about defense than the teams offensive potential during three days in Atlantis; that finish might have reinforced it to his team, too.Marshall also didnt rule out the possibility of using pressure defense more going forward.Ill just have to evaluate us and evaluate my coaching and evaluate our personnel and try to figure out a way to play more like the team in the second half than the team in the first half, he said.Michigan State: The Spartans looked fresh and showed a balanced offense for about 30 minutes. From there, they did just enough to hang on.We didnt beat the Lakers, but we won a big game, Izzo said, and we did it with old-style grit for 90 percent of that game.POLL IMPLICATIONSThe Spartans will give voters an interesting decision for the next AP Top 25 . Yes, all of the Spartans losses in this brutally tough opening month are to ranked teams. But will that be enough to keep a 4-3 team in the poll? Stay tuned.Wichita State had a shot to play its way in, but two straight losses to ranked opponents ended that chance for now.BRIDGES IN ATLANTISBridges, a 6-foot-7 freshman from Flint, Michigan, went 6 for 11 from the field and made 4 of 8 3-pointers.Once I get going, the basket opens up a little bit more for me, said Bridges, who scored 22 in the opener against St. Johns and had 15 against Baylor.UP NEXTWichita State: The Shockers return home for a Tuesday game against Southern Nazarene, a Division II program from Bethany, Oklahoma.Michigan State: Things dont get any easier for the Spartans. They travel to face No. 6 Duke in its famously hostile Cameron Indoor Stadium on Tuesday in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.---Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap---More AP college basketball at http://collegebasketball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25S Well Teakwood Drinking Bottle . Spiller left Week 3s 27-20 loss to the New York Jets with a thigh injury, but fully practiced with the team all week and expects to be ready to go on Sunday. Cheap Swell Bottles . "Trying to breathe," he said with a grin. Bernier stopped 42 of 43 shots on Monday night, including all 22 in a hectic middle frame, his heroic performance propelling the Leafs toward an undue point in their final game before the Christmas break. http://www.swellbottleuk.com/ . According the Toronto Star, a knee injury will keep Sundin out of the lineup, which includes former teammates Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Tie Domi and Curtis Joseph. Swell Uk Bottle . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap. Liberty London sWell Bottle . With his new coach and six-time Grand Slam singles champion Boris Becker watching him during an official match for the first time, Djokovic appeared tentative early against the Slovakian player, who often appeared content to keep the ball in play.GSTAAD, Switzerland -- French Open junior champion Rebeka Masarova advanced to the quarterfinals of her first senior tour event, the Ladies Championship Gstaad in her native Switzerland on Friday.The 16-year-old Masarova, ranked No. 797, won her second-round match 7-6 (2), 4-6, 6-2 against Anett Kontaveit, a 20-year-old from Estonia ranked No. 92.Masarova debuted on the WTA Tour on Thursday by beating former No. 1-ranked Jelena Jankovic of Serbia in three sets.In Saturdays quarterfinals, Masarova will play Annika Beck of Germany, who had two wins on Friday in the rain-affected clay-court event.The fifth-seeded Beck beat Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic 6-2, 6-1 in the second round after completing a first-round win against Marina Erakovic of New Zealand.Top-seeded Timea Baccsinszky of Switzerland ended a two-day wait to play her second-round match by quickly beating qualifier Mandy Minella of Luxembourg 6-2, 6-2.ddddddddddddBacsinszky, ranked No. 11, next plays Johanna Larsson, the sixth-seeded Swede, who beat Swiss qualifier Amra Sadikovic 6-3, 6-4.Third-seeded Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands also won twice, completing a first-round win over Tamira Paszek of Austria before beating Claire Feuerstein of Italy 7-6 (9), 6-1 in the second round.Fourth-seeded Caroline Garcia of France was beaten 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-4 by Lara Arruabarrena of Spain, who later lost in the second round, against Carina Witthoeft of Germany 6-1, 7-6 (7). 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