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The 22nd-ranked Michigan State basketball team left the door open for a comeback, but 14th-ranked Arkansas did not take advantage Saturday night. 

Trevon Brazile air-balled a contested 3-point attempt in the closing seconds and the Razorbacks lost 69-66 to the Spartans in front of an announced crowd of 14,797 at the Breslin Center on the Michigan State campus in East Lansing. 

Arkansas (1-1) lost its first game and the Spartans (2-0) remained undefeated. 

The Razorbacks did not make a field goal after Nick Pringle’s second-chance dunk to cut Michigan State’s lead to 66-65 with 2:43 remaining. Pringle made 1 of 2 free throws tie the game with 1:51 to play, then the Spartans ended the game on a 3-0 run. 

Carson Cooper made 1 of 2 free throws with 1:21 left to put Michigan State ahead 67-66. Arkansas freshman Darius Acuff missed a runner the next time down the floor, then bailed out the Spartans at the end of an otherwise good defensive possession when he fouled Jeremy Fears on a 3-point attempt with 43 seconds left. 

As he struggled to gather the ball, Fears got Acuff in the air and got off a shot attempt with 1 second remaining on the shot clock. He made 2 of 3 free throws to increase the lead to 69-66. 

The Razorbacks’ offense struggled to get good looks in the final minute. Meleek Thomas missed a contested 3, then mishandled the ball as he put up a wild shot in the lane after a Pringle offensive rebound. 

Jordan Scott missed both of his free-throw attempts with 15.9 seconds left to keep Arkansas’ hope alive. Out of a timeout, Acuff missed another 3-pointer that was contested at the top of the key, but the ball went out of bounds off Michigan State’s Coen Carr with 4.8 seconds to play. 

The Spartans took a timeout to set up their defense. Brazile caught the inbounds pass on the right wing with time to find a teammate, but stepped back and missed badly on his attempt that was well defended by Cam Ward. 

The shot was indicative of Brazile’s night and the Razorbacks’ second half. He battled foul trouble throughout the game scored just 3 points with 2 rebounds in 16 minutes. 

Arkansas shot 8 for 28 from the floor and 2 for 14 after halftime. The team missed its final 5 shot attempts and 6 of its last 7 shots. 

The Razorbacks led 39-36 after a first half that included 11 lead changes and 4 times, but there were warning signs early that Arkansas might be in trouble. 

Most notably, the Razorbacks could not defensively keep the Spartans away from the rim. Michigan State finished with 19 offensive rebounds and 18 second-chance points, including Jaxon Kohler’s put back as time expired in the first half. 

Arkansas had its greatest success when it was able to get in transition, but the Spartans succeeded in keeping the game played at a slower pace in the half court. 

The Razorbacks shot 22 for 56 overall and 7 for 28 beyond the 3-point line. Arkansas was 15 for 23 at the foul line. 

Michigan State overcame dreadful game from beyond the arc (1 for 14) with 46 points in the paint. The Spartans shot 25 for 61 and rebounded more than half of their 36 missed shots. 

Free-throw shooting had been an issue for Michigan State early in the season, but the Spartans were good enough at the line, 18 for 26, to come out on top. 

Ward scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds off the bench to lead Michigan State. Carr added 15 points and 7 rebounds and Kohler 10 points and 7 rebounds. Fears had 9 assist. 

The freshmen Acuff and Thomas scored 16 points apiece for Arkansas. Acuff, a Detroit native, played the game with several friends and family members in attendance. 

D.J. Wagner scored 13 points for the Razorbacks. 

Arkansas is scheduled to host Central Arkansas on Tuesday at Bud Walton Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. 

Box score