AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — After battling all year and coming up with several improbable victories, the Iowa State men’s basketball team finally ran out of steam Saturday night in a 75-64 loss to Michigan State in the Elite Eight.

The Cyclones were in the game all the way, leading for most of the second half by as many as eight points.

However, Michigan State took the lead for good on an open jumper by Charlie Bell, which put the Spartans in front 62-61 with 2:58 left.

MSU then reeled off five more points in a row, making it a 12-0 run, and Iowa State’s dream season was over.

Iowa State didn’t go without a fight, however. Head coach Larry Eustachy, upset at the officials all game, finally blew his top with :09 left and the game in hand for Michigan State.

Eustachy was given two technicals and thrown out of the game. The Spartans then nailed six consecutive free throws to provide the misleading final margin.

“I apologized to my team after the game for the way it ended. I was disappointed. But I won’t apologize for my actions,” Eustachy said.

Iowa State certainly had its chances to advance to its first Final Four in the modern era.

With Iowa State up five and 5:49 to play, Michigan head coach Tom Izzo was assessed a technical foul after Marcus Fizer called a time-out while jumping out of bounds.

Kantrail Horton nailed two free throws, and the advantage was up to seven, with Iowa State having possession.

However, a turnover lead to a big three-pointer by A.J. Granger to bring MSU back within four.

After a Fizer basket, Morris Peterson answered with a three-pointer to close the gap to three.

Two Bell free throws and the aforementioned jump shot gave the Spartans their first lead since 14:22 was left in the second half.

“We felt we were in control of the game. We just wanted to get three big stops, but they closed the gap with a couple of big three-pointers. You have to give them credit for staying with it. When the chips were down, they came to play,” Michael Nurse said.

Following a time-out, the Spartans ran an alley-oop that was connected between point guard Mateen Cleaves and Peterson. The dunk sent the sellout crowd of 21,214 into a frenzy.

“You can’t give me all the credit for calling that one. We were in the huddle, and Morris Peterson said, ‘Why don’t we try it?’ I said, “Sure, let’s give it a shot,’ and it worked,” MSU coach Tom Izzo said.

Three more free throws down the stretch sent Michigan State to the Final Four in Indianapolis and Iowa State back home to Ames.

“They made the plays and we didn’t late. They executed and we didn’t. Michigan State is the best team in the country,” Eustachy said.

“We have a lot of guys who really have adopted a refuse to lose attitude. And when you have that, you become a very hard team to beat,” Cleaves said.

The Spartans were led by Peterson, the captain of the Midwest Regional All-Tournament Team, and Granger, who both tallied 18.

Another key player was Andre Hutson, the power forward who scored 17 points and was instrumental in holding All-American Marcus Fizer to 15 points.

“We wouldn’t be sitting here if it weren’t for Andre Hutson, I’ll guarantee you that,” Cleaves said.

“Hutson is a great player, but they’re all great players, and they all did well on both sides of the ball,” Fizer said.

The Cyclones were led by Jamaal Tinsley, who scored 18 points. Michael Nurse added 17 points, hitting 5-9 from the three-point arc.

“Some might say that it’s unfair to have the two best teams in the tournament meet in the regional finals,” Nurse said. “But that’s the pick of the draw. You have to play the game.”