Michigan State vs. Marquette: Score, Twitter Reaction from Orlando Classic 2014

 The Marquette Golden Eagles (3-3) would not go quietly, but ultimately the No. 20 Michigan State Spartans (5-1) prevailed 79-68 and advanced to the finals of the Orlando Classic on Friday night.

WiSports chimed in on Marquette's effort:

Led by a career-high 24 points from junior guard Denzel Valentine, the Spartans were able to hold off a feisty but less talented Golden Eagles squad. Valentine made six of 10 three-point attempts to offset his seven turnovers.

The red-hot Spartan got to spend some time with ESPN legend Dick Vitale.

After a 19-point performance against Rider Broncs on Thursday, Valentine is averaging 22 points per game in his last two games. He's a leading candidate for MVP as he and the Spartans head into the title game.

The Spartans also got 19 points from senior guard Travis Trice.

Marquette was led by its high-energy backcourt. Senior Matt Carlino followed up his 38-point outing against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets on Thanksgiving with just 14 points on Friday.

Freshman Duane Wilson scored 15 and dished three assists.

The key to the game was three-point shooting. The Spartans made 12-of-23 attempts from long-range compared to 6-of-14 for the Golden Eagles. The threes for Michigan State came steady and at major moments during the game. Bryn Forbes nailed a backbreaker with 3:44 left that put Michigan State up by 10 at 72-62.

Though it won, Michigan State still has some areas of its game to clean up.

As a team, the Spartans committed 16 turnovers and three of them came in the last 5:28 of the game. Still, they had enough to win behind clutch shooting and a smothering defense. The Spartans forced two turnovers and held Marquette to just five points in the final 5:30 of the game.

Michigan State came into the game having won three-straight since a 81-71 loss to Duke on Nov. 18. None of the victories have come over ranked teams, but it's still good for Tom Izzo's squad to get back in the win column regularly. 

In the finals, the Spartans will take on the No. 11 Kansas Jayhawks in Sunday's final. The Jayhawks thwarted an upset bid by the Tennessee Volunteers on Friday. Perry Ellis' 24 points and 13 rebounds led Kansas to the 82-67 win.

He may be Valentine's biggest competition for tournament MVP honors, although Jayhawks freshman Cliff Alexander has been stellar as well.

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports lauds Sunday's finale:

Once matters are resolved in Orlando, the Spartans will travel to South Bend, Indiana to take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. A series of very winnable non-conference games will follow for Michigan State. The Spartans won't face their first Big-Ten foe until Jan. 5 when they host the Indiana Hoosiers.

Perhaps the hot shooting will still be in full effect, and the ball protection will have improved by then.

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