Spartans played serious defense, beating the Gophers on the road, 53-48

Kalin Lucas scored 18 points for Michigan State, and the Spartans harassed Minnesota into a season-low score by outlasting the Gophers 53-48 in a matchup of two Big Ten teams sitting squarely on the NCAA tournament bubble.

Draymond Green, who didn’t start the last game because of an illness, returned to the first group and had seven points with 10 rebounds and four steals for the Spartans (16-11, 8-7), who have won three of their last four games after an uncharacteristic midseason slide.

Durrell Summers had his sixth straight single-digit scoring game, shooting 3 for 11, but Michigan State used seven free throws in the final 82 seconds to retake the lead and seal a critical victory.

Trevor Mbakwe had 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Gophers (17-10, 6-9), who have lost six of their eight games without senior point guard Al Nolen.