Conner George: 'To shoot six free throws is something crazy'
WASHINGTON – It might be a while before Conner George has such a good look at scoring six points in a Michigan State basketball game.
The redshirt freshman walk-on guard from Okemos played the final two minutes of MSU’s 78-51 Big Ten tournament win over Penn State Thursday in Washington, D.C.
He scored four points. And could have had six.
George was fouled driving to the basket with 14 seconds left. After Penn State’s Josh Reaves committed the initial foul, Lamar Stevens and Tony Carr were both whistled for technical fouls, resulting in four more free throws. George took all six.
“I realized I was going to the free-throw line. I took two steps and I heard someone say something and the ref T’d him up and I heard someone else say something and the ref T’d him up, and there were six free throws to be had,” George said. “(Tom) Izzo looked at me and said, ‘Are you going to make them?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ Unfortunately I missed two of them.”
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George punched the ball at one point in frustration, leading Izzo to snap, “Take your damn time and make the free throws.” He made the last two.
“I had a feeling I might go in (the game), but to shoot six free throws is something crazy,” George said.
George, the son of MSU volleyball coach Cathy George, looks significantly different in the arms and shoulders than he did a year ago or at Okemos. His goal is to at some point have a role at MSU – beyond the scout team and mop-up-duty free throws.
“I don’t want to go somewhere and be content not playing,” George said. “I’m going to give it everything I have for this team to get better and for me individually, try to do something for this program on the court.”
Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @Graham_Couch.