East Lansing, Mich. -- Junior Isaac Howard capped a four-point night with his 26th goal of the season at 15:09 of the second overtime period to give No. 1/1 Michigan State a 4-3 overtime victory over No 9/9 Ohio State on Saturday night at Munn Ice Arena
Howard, a Hobey Baker Top 10 selection, not only had the game-winning score, but also had a first period goal and the primary assists on the other two MSU goals from Karsen Dorwart and Tanner Kelly. Howard is now the national leader in points per game (1.42), ranks third in goals (26), and is tied for fourth in points (51). He was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Big Ten Tournament and was joined on the all-tournament team by goalie Trey Augustine and defenseman Matt Basgall.
Michigan State becomes the first team in Big Ten Conference history to win regular-season and tournament titles in consecutive seasons.
MSU took an early 2-0 lead on power play goals by Dorwart and Howard, as the Buckeyes started the game with four straight penalties. Ohio State cut the lead in half with just over two minutes remaining in the first period. After a scoreless second, MSU got a goal from Tanner Kelly less than a minute into the third period to put MSU on top, 3-1. The Buckeyes rallied for a goal at 12:46 from Damien Carfagna to make it a 3-2 game, and Gunnarwolfe Fontaine potted the tying goal at 17:39, and the teams headed to overtime.
OSU had an 11-9 edge in shots in the first OT frame, but MSU countered with a 12-4 shot count in the second extra frame, with Howard's shot finding its way through traffic and past Logan Terness for the game-winner with 4:51 remaining.
Terness was outstanding for the Buckeyes, making 47 saves. Trey Augustine had 38 stops, the second-most in a game for the netminder this season.
The NCAA Tournament field will be revealed during the selection show on Sunday at 3 pm and televised on ESPNU.
This story was originally featured on msu.spartans.com.