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Michigan State, Texas meet at Madison Square Garden

Nov 16, 2006 - 2:47 PM Michigan St (3-0) at No. 18 Texas (2-0) 9:00 pm EST

NEW YORK (Ticker) - Michigan State squares off against 18th-ranked Texas in the semifinals of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic on Thursday.

This will be the third meeting between the two schools, all at a neutral site. The Longhorns won the first encounter back in 1999 and the most recent in 2003, which sent them to the Final Four.

The Spartans should pose as a challenge to the Longhorns, who opened the season with back-to-back victories over lesser competition, the latest a 92-66 win over Chicago State last Friday.

A.J. Abrams, who nailed eight 3-pointers, scored a career-high 28 points and freshman Kevin Durant added 21 points and 13 rebounds for Texas, which made 13-of-24 shots from the arc.

Michigan State gets its first big test after a scare from Brown followed by convincing victories over Youngstown State and the Citadel, the latest a 73-41 triumph Sunday.

Drew Neitzel netted 17 points and Raymar Morgan and fellow freshman Isaiah Dahlman chipped in 10 apiece for the Spartans, who held the Bulldogs to 29 percent (15-of-51) shooting from the field.