Surprisingly , Bridges opted to not enter the NBA Draft and returned to Michigan State for his sophomore year in 2017 – 18 . With newcomer Jaren Jackson Jr. , a consensus top-25 player , joining the team , the Spartans were picked by several publications as the No. 1 team in the country . They began the season ranked No. 2 behind Duke . After a loss to Duke in the second game of the season , the Spartans won the Victory Bracket of the PK – 80 Tournament holding No. 9-ranked North Carolina to a school-record low for shooting percentage as they shot 24.6 % from the field , including 5.6 % from three-point land . The Spartans won 14 straight games , and ascended to No. 1 in the country . A road loss to surprise Big Ten contender Ohio State followed by a home loss to rival Michigan dropped MSU in the rankings and shook the team 's confidence . However , the team rebounded well , finishing the season by winning their last 12 regular season games , including a win over Big Ten co-leader Purdue as Bridges took the ball and hit a three-pointer to win the game . On February 17 , 2018 while playing at Northwestern , the Spartans overcame a 27-point deficit to beat the Wildcats , at that time , the fifth largest comeback all-time in Division I history . The Spartans finished with a school-record 16 Big Ten wins and their first outright regular season Big Ten title since 2009 . The team also finished 28 – 3 , a record for regular season wins . The Spartans fell again to their rival Michigan in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament and received only a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament due to their low strength of schedule . The NCAA trip marked the school 's 21st consecutive trip to the Tournament , but following a win in the First Round over Bucknell , the Spartans fell to 11th-seeded Syracuse marking the third consecutive year and first time under Izzo that the Spartans had failed to reach the Sweet Sixteen in a three-year period . The Spartans led the nation in field goal defense , rebounding margin , and blocks . Freshman Jaren Jackson Jr. set the single-season MSU record for blocks and was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year . Bridges was named first-team All-Big Ten and second team All-American . For much of the season , the on-court play was shrouded by reports that surfaced that Tom Izzo 's program had covered up sexual assault allegations ten years prior . Izzo refused to comment on the reports due to an ongoing investigation by several agencies including Michigan Attorney General 's office and the United States Education Department. , but repeatedly said he had no intention of leaving Michigan State and they he cooperated with all investigations including the previous allegation of sexual assault in 2010 . In August of 2018 the NCAA cleared Izzo in his handling of the sexual assault allegations . The school was implicated tangentially to the FBI-college basketball scandal as reports surfaced that Bridges had been paid to attend Michigan State , among other allegations . MSU conducted an investigation and presented their findings that the allegations were false to the NCAA , who cleared Bridges , ruling him eligible to play
Big Ten Tournament
2018 Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
Michigan State Spartans men's basketball