Watch: Michigan State basketball's Jaden Akins rises for emphatic pin block

Jaden Akins provided one of the first March Madness highlights, living above the rim.

The junior Michigan State basketball guard and Farmington native elevated like few else can and emphatically blocked Josh Hubbard's layup attempt in transition early in the second half of the Spartans' NCAA tournament first-round matchup against Mississippi State.

With MSU leading 35-29 two minutes in the second half, Hubbard broke free on a fastbreak after an errant pass from A.J. Hoggard in the direction of Carson Cooper ended up in the hands of Mississippi State. Hubbard got the lookahead pass down the court, but Akins closed the gap fast. Hubbard tried to go up with a right-handed layup, but Akins rose above and pinned the basketball off the square on the glass for the block to regain possession.

Akins took a few short steps near the free throw line in preparation for the jump, stayed to the right of Hubbard's body to avoid the foul and emphatically slapped the ball off the glass for the rejection.

The block was clean, but Akins' arm caught Hubbard in the head on the way down, leaving Mississippi State's leading scorer on the ground for a few moments. Hubbard, who had 13 of Mississippi State's 29 points at that point, left the game to be checked for a concussion according to the CBS broadcast, but has since re-entered the game.

Michigan State increased its lead from 35-29 to 43-29 with an 8-0 run in the next three minutes following the blocked shot. Mississippi State broke the run with 15 minutes left with a spurt of five straight points, including a basket from Hubbard in transition.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State's Jaden Akins flies for huge block in NCAA tournament