Drew Neitzel took his time with the dagger. The Michigan State sophomore guard dribbled, penetrated a step, then passed to teammate Shannon Brown. With Penn State trailing by six, the clock started its frantic one-minute countdown.

Brown passed the ball back and Neitzel leaned under the outstretched arms of Penn State sophomore guard Mike Walker, then sent up an awkward -- but good -- 3-point shot. With the dagger in, the Spartans took a nine-point lead and went on to win Saturday in East Lansing, 69-60.

Though the Nittany Lions (10-8, 2-5 Big Ten) challenged the No. 12 Spartans (16-5, 4-3) all afternoon, never trailing by more than five until the final two minutes, they didn't score in the final 3:36.

Penn State coach Ed DeChellis said he told his team it was going to be a possession game, but the Lions didn't make the most of their own down the stretch, missing their final five shots.

"This kind of game, you can't do that," DeChellis said on the Penn State Sports Network. "We can't just get something good to happen. We're one more shot away from getting something done."

However, the end did not reflect how close the Lions came to a major road victory. They held a lead from midway through the first half (16-15) until 16:17 in the second half, when Michigan State took the lead (37-36). Even after that point, Penn State never trailed by more than five until their shooting well ran dry.

"If we compete like this every time, we're going to come out with wins," sophomore guard Geary Claxton said.

Claxton led the team with a double-double, scoring 19 with 13 rebounds, as three other Lions scored in double figures. But for every Claxton, there's an equal and opposite reaction.

Spartans' junior guard Brown filled that role in the absence of the Spartans' second-leading scorer, the 6-foot-11 center Paul Davis -- who took a shot to the head in practice Friday and required stitches. Of Brown's 29 points, 23 came in the second half.

"He's making big shots for them," Claxton said. "He's the one who kept them in the game."

The see-saw game took shape in that period as nine of the game's 12 lead changes occurred in the second half. Both teams hit big shots before either opponent could run away with it.

After Claxton opened the period with a lay-up to give the Lions their largest lead (7), Brown answered with a 3-pointer to trim Penn State's lead to 34-30. Later, with the Spartans holding a 55-50 lead and the momentum, junior guard Ben Luber hit his own three.

"I'm glad we overcame some issues and won the game, but his guys played their tail off," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said in a press release.

Penn State's performance Saturday in East Lansing outstripped the 72-43 hole-in-the-boat sinker it absorbed at Wisconsin three days prior. Both games were on the road vs. ranked opponents, but Saturday the team gutted out a near upset.

"It was a whole different energy level than it was Wednesday night," DeChellis said. "The guys brought it."

Unfortunately for the Lions, Neitzel brought his hot hand to the final two minutes, hitting two 3-pointers to extend a 63-60 lead to 66-60, and finally, 69-60: the dagger.

"It's real upsetting," Claxton said. "We're just going to have to take it out on Michigan Wednesday night."

Spreading the Wealth

Claxton's double-double may come as no surprise, as he leads the Lions in scoring and rebounding. But Walker and freshman forward Milos Bogetic made game-changing contributions, tallying 13 and 10 off the bench, respectively.

Maybe Bogetic's new shaved-head look created some good karma: the duo paced the Lions in the final 10 minutes of the first half (13 of 19 Penn State points), as well as scored the team's final seven.

Please Don't Touch

After Luber missed a shot with 1:09 left, time became a concern with the Spartans leading by six and with the ball. DeChellis elected not to foul as the clock ticked down, which eventually led to one question after Neitzel nailed the game-breaker -- why?

"We thought we could play it out," DeChellis said. "I know if we foul them, they're gonna go make some free throws."

Michigan State made 8-of-10 free throws in the game, including 4-of-4 in the final five minutes. On the other hand, it may have been a no-win situation as the Spartans shot over 60 percent for the half.