March Madness means total teamwork is needed for your school to advance, and occasionally, that means students outside of the hoops team.

Much as been made of the rash of injuries Michigan State's basketball was incurred down the stretch run.

One of the biggest losses was junior center Nick Ward, who fractured his hand in February. Enter the school's College of Engineering, who manually tooled a brace for Ward to wear so he could return to action quicker.

“This was an outstanding opportunity for MSU engineering faculty and students to work together with MSU athletics to make a difference,” said Reid Bush, who’s also part of the Biomechanical Design Research Lab recently told MSU Today magazine. “I've shared this story with all of my classes and students. The excitement it generates in the classroom is amazing; students can relate to the issue and see the engineering solution.”

The Spartans open NCAA Tournament play Thursday afternoon at 2:45pm against Bradley.

 

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