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EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Tyler OConnors stats were fine, and Michigan State won.The night still could have been a lot better.OConnor threw for 190 yards and three touchdowns, and the 12th-ranked Spartans held off upset-minded Furman 28-13 on Friday. OConnor went 13 of 18 with an interception in his second career start, but Michigan State let the Paladins hang around for a while in the opener for both teams.I try to do things 100 percent right all the time, and I dont think I did that today, OConnor said. A wins a win, were OK with it, but we have a lot of things we have to fix up. We stopped ourselves more than they stopped us, we think.OConnor, a fifth-year senior, is taking over as Michigan States No. 1 quarterback after spending the past three seasons backing up Connor Cook.Michigan State was merely serviceable on offense for most of the night, and that was good enough against Furman. LJ Scott ran for 105 yards and a touchdown.Down 21-13, Furman took over at the Michigan State 44 with 11:49 remaining after OConnors pass was intercepted. But P.J. Blazejowskis pass was picked off on the very next play -- linebacker Andrew Dowell made a diving, one-handed grab to give the Spartans the ball back.OConnor threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Jamal Lyles with 4:55 remaining to make it 28-13.Were down by eight points and weve got the ball at midfield, Furman coach Bruce Fowler said. Thats a pretty good spot for us to be in against a Big Ten opponent. Well see if we build on it.The Spartans have won 18 home openers in a row.THE TAKEAWAYFurman: Blazejowski and Reese Hannon were listed together atop the depth chart at QB, but it was Blazejowski who got the call, with Fowler going with the junior over his fifth-year senior. Blazejowski went 15 of 30 for 123 yards with an interception, and the Paladins looked better offensively as the game progressed.P.J. did a good job. He got some experience but he was pretty good with the football, Fowler said. The guy made a heck of a play on the interception.Michigan State: The Spartans were underwhelming after scoring a touchdown on their opening drive. Michigan State split carries fairly evenly between LJ Scott, Madre London and Gerald Holmes last season, but on Friday it was Scott who did most of the work. London had only five carries and Holmes didnt have any.Michigan State had 10 penalties for 120 yards, which was part of the reason the Spartans had trouble putting the game away earlier.I think the key to anything is how you handle disappointment or how you handle some things that dont go right for you, Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said. Were not going to lose our mind over there. Were going to keep coaching and coach for the next play.CONNECTIONOConnors top target was fifth-year senior Monty Madaris, who caught five passes for 85 yards. Madaris had only seven catches in his career prior to this game.KEY NUMBERSFurman: The Paladins had 15 yards of offense in the first quarter and 211 after that. They finished with 18 first downs, only one fewer than Michigan State. Furman had the ball for 11:47 in the third quarter.Michigan State: The Spartans held Furman to field goals on two of its three trips to the red zone.POLL IMPLICATIONSMICHIGAN STATE : This wasnt a particularly stylish win for the Spartans, but a few teams above them have tough openers, so Michigan State could move in the ranking if theres any upheaval in the top 10.UP NEXTFurman: The Paladins can be pleased with their effort against the defending Big Ten champions. They play at The Citadel next weekend.Michigan State: The Spartans have an open date -- and a lot to work on -- before playing at Notre Dame on Sept. 17.Weve got two weeks to fix any problems we have and get ready for Notre Dame, Dantonio said. Im sure itll be quite the challenge down there.---Follow Noah Trister at www.Twitter.com/noahtrister Custom Milwaukee Bucks Jerseys . 10 VCU 85-67 on Thursday night at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. The Seminoles (4-0) have scored at least 80 points in each of their games. George Hill Jersey . Takahashi, who had a 10-point lead after the short program, received 268.31 points after the free skate to finish 15 points ahead of second-place Nobunari Oda. http://www.nbabucksproshop.com/Authentic-George-Hill-Bucks-Jersey/ . Denis Coderre, the former federal MP who was elected mayor on Nov. 3, has drawn the ire of some Montreal Canadiens. During last nights game he tweeted: "Hello? Can we get a one-way ticket to (minor-league) Hamilton for David Desharnais please. D. J. Wilson Bucks Jersey . Didier Drogba gave away the penalty that put Senegal one goal away from a major upset, but the veteran striker will get another chance -- probably his last -- at the World Cup after Salomon Kalous injury-time strike sealed the Ivorians place in Brazil next year. Glenn Robinson Bucks Jersey . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. CHAPEL HILL, N.C. -- North Carolina wont have a difficult time finding motivation this season.The memories of losing in the NCAA championship game on a last-second 3-pointer to Villanova still sting more than six months later. It was the crushing final play in a 33-win season that saw the Tar Heels go from a preseason No. 1-ranked team questioned about its toughness to a group that matured enough to sweep the Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season and tournament titles before reaching the Final Four.There are enough veteran returnees for UNC to have the potential to do it again, driven by the memory of coming so oh-so-close to cutting down the nets in April.Every time I turn around and look up at the banners, where the national championship banners are, junior Joel Berry II said, sometimes it hurts me that we dont have the 2016 national championship up there. So its just motivation to me.Some Tar Heels, including Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams, still havent watched film from the loss.I thought we had a great, great year but its just like somebody pulls your heart out and taunts you by shaking it in front of you, Williams said. But youve got to get over it.The Tar Heels (33-7, 14-4 ACC) have some big holes with the losses of four-year starter Marcus Paige -- the guy UNC looked for when it needed a big shot -- and Associated Press all-American Brice Johnson inside. But they return six of their top eight scorers while adding a top-10 recruiting class.Berry is the top returning scorer (12.8 points), while fellow junior Justin Jackson (12.2) and senior big man Kennedy Meeks are returning starters. The Tar Heels also return ACC sixth man of the Isaiah Hicks, now likely to earn a promotion into the starting lineup.On the bench, senior Nate Britt provides backcourt depth along with junior Theo Pinson -- out indefinitely with a broken bone in his right foot -- and sophomore wing Kenny Williams III.The Tar Heels also will get help up front from McDonalds All-American Tony Bradley Jr., who headlines a wing-heavy recruiting class.---Some other things to know about the Tar Heels thiss season:PINSONS INJURY: Pinsons injury during a recent practice, announced Friday, has the potential to be a big blow.dddddddddddd The versatile swingman is the teams top defender, a good passer and a leader with a knack for keeping up team morale .BERRY IN CHARGE?: Berry looks like the top candidate to take Paiges role as the guy to entrust with taking the big shot. He was the teams best outside shooter (38 percent from 3-point range) and led the team in assists, steals and free-throw percentage. And in a sign that Berry could be ready for a leap, he upped his game by averaging 13.7 points and shooting 50 percent in six NCAA Tournament games -- ending with 20 points against Villanova.HICKS FOUL TROUBLE: Keeping Hicks on the floor last season was a challenge, including twice in the final 10 games when he picked up four or five fouls in fewer than 10 minutes. The 6-foot-9 forward brings scoring and rebounding, and he was the teams defensive player of the game eight times -- third most on the team behind Paige and Berry. The Tar Heels need him out there this year with fewer frontcourt options.JACKSONS GROWTH: Jackson has good size on the perimeter and has been a complimentary scorer through his first two seasons. The Tar Heels need him to become a consistent scorer now in a leading role, especially when it comes to improving his 29-percent shooting from behind the arc last year. Hes an unselfish player and has occasionally seemed content to blend into the background, but the Tar Heels are tougher to stop when hes playing assertively .THE ROOKIES: The 6-foot-10 Bradley, a native of Bartow, Florida, will have a shot at immediate minutes for a team with only Meeks and Hicks returning to the frontcourt. The rest of that recruiting class brings depth on the wing with Brandon Robinson, Seventh Woods and Shea Rush.---Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/aaronbeardap and the APs college basketball site at http://collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '