Spartans Open Big Ten Campaign With Victory Over Rutgers

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — No. 11 Michigan State pulled away and beat Rutgers thanks to two staples of Hall of Fame coach Tom Izzo's program.

Defense and rebounding.

 

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 08: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts in the second half of a game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Breslin Center on December 8, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

 

Cassius Winston had 23 points and seven assists, helping the Spartans top the Scarlet Knights 77-65 on Sunday night in the Big Ten opener for both teams.

"It was almost good for us have to grind one out because we're going to have to do that for a while until we get back on track," Izzo said.

 

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 08: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans drivers to the basket in the first half against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Breslin Center on December 8, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

 

Michigan State (6-3) led by just two points midway through the second half before outscoring the Scarlet Knights 16-7 to take control of what was a closely contested game for much of the night.

"It's tougher in conference play," Spartans shooting guard Gabe Brown said. "A lot of those Rutgers players got better."

Brown scored a season-high 14 points, starting in place of Rocket Watts, who is expected to be out for about a week with a leg injury.

 

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 08: Gabe Brown #44 of the Michigan State Spartans battles for a rebound against Jacob Young #42 of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Breslin Center on December 8, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

 

"Missing Rocket, that's another key player who can spread the floor and create," Winston said. "It's a little tougher without him, but Gabe came in and did some good things."

Michigan State's Xavier Tillman had 14 points and 10 rebounds while Aaron Henry added 12 points on 2 of 10 shooting from the field and 7 of 8 at the line.

The Scarlet Knights (6-3) were competitive despite their leading scorers struggling to make shots. Ron Harper Jr. scored nine points on 4 of 12 shooting and Geo Baker had just four points on 1 of 7 shooting. Both players entered the game averaging 13 points as the team's only double-digit scorers.

 

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 08: Head coach Steve Pikiell of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights looks on in the first half against the Michigan State Spartans at the Breslin Center on December 8, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

 

"Geo is going to have nights like this because he's a good player and teams are going to key in on him," coach Steve Pikiell said. 

Rutgers reserves Akwaski Yeboah scored a season-high 17 points and Jacob Young had a season-high 12 points.

"I love my bench," Pikiell said.

 

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 08: Jacob Young #42 of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights drives to the basket in the the second half against Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans at the Breslin Center on December 8, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

 

Michigan State held the Scarlet Knights to 40 percent shooting and had a 40-32 edge in rebounds.

The Spartans shot 43.6% overall and made just 7 of 21 3-pointers, failing to find a groove on offense after looking lost with the ball in an 87-75 loss against No. 10 Duke on Tuesday night.

Michigan State made up for its outside shooting woes by getting to the basket and drawing fouls, leading to its making 22 of 27 at the line.

 

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 08: Aaron Henry #11 of the Michigan State Spartans grabs a loose ball in the second half in front of Paul Mulcahy #4 of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at the Breslin Center on December 8, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)

 

"There's only one way we could have won that game and that was to get to the line, make your free throws," Izzo said. "And, rebound the daylights out of the ball."

BIG PICTURE

Rutgers: Pikiell potentially has his best team in his fourth season with the Scarlet Knights, who haven't had a winning record since the 2005-06 season in coach Gary Waters' last year. "I'm excited about our future," Pikiell said. Rutgers doesn't have much depth in the post, but perimeter play and defensive intensity should help it pull off some upsets. The Scarlet Knights entered the game third in the Big Ten in blocks, steals and turnovers forced and showed Michigan State those statistics were legitimate. "They were putting pressure on us the whole game," Izzo said.

Michigan State: The top-ranked team in the preseason is in a funk. "We're just going to inch forward, closer and closer, to try and get back," Izzo said. 

"The Spartans don't appear to be having much fun during and away from games because they're still reeling from the death of Winston's brother a month ago. They also have not made up for the loss of injured senior Joshua Langford or a trio of key players from last year's team: Matt McQuaid, Kenny Goins and Nick Ward. 

POLL IMPLICATIONS

Michigan State might plummet in the poll on Monday after being dominated by Duke at home in a game that wasn't as close as the score indicated and struggling for much of the game against the Scarlet Knights.

UP NEXT

Rutgers: Hosts Wisconsin on Wednesday night.

Michigan State: Plays Oakland on Saturday in Detroit.

 

© 2019 Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.