EAST LANSING, Mich. — Gary Harris scored 17 points and Derrick Nix had 14 to help No. 8 Michigan State rout No. 4 Michigan 75-52 on Tuesday night, the rivalry’s first matchup of top 10 teams.
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Gary Harris scored 17 points and Derrick Nix had 14 to help No. 8 Michigan State rout No. 4 Michigan 75-52 on Tuesday night, the rivalry’s first matchup of top 10 teams.
The Spartans (21-4, 10-2 Big Ten) broke a first-place tie in the conference with No. 1 Indiana, which plays at Michigan State next Tuesday.
The Wolverines (21-4, 8-4), who have lost three of four, were held to a season-low point total.
Michigan State didn’t trail once, led by as many as 16 points in the first half and enjoyed 30-point leads in the second half.
Trey Burke scored 18 points for the Wolverines while Tim Hardaway Jr. was 1-of-11 from the field and scored a season-low two points. He was held scoreless until making a layup early in the second half and didn’t score again.
The Wolverines, who pride themselves on taking care of the basketball, had a season-high 16 turnovers and didn’t have much success getting the ball away from the turnover-prone Spartans.
Everything went right for Michigan State, which had just eight turnovers and made 48-plus percent of its shots.
Harris scored from the outside, making five 3-pointers, and Nix had his way on the inside as part of a balanced offense.
Keith Appling had 11 points and Branden Dawson scored 10 before leaving the court late in the game because Michigan’s Mitch McGary hit him in the face inadvertently with his right arm. Freshman Matt Costello scored a season-high eight points.
Michigan State has won two straight in the series after losing three in a row following a run of dominance for the Spartans.
No. 7 FLORIDA 69,
No. 25 KENTUCKY 52
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Scottie Wilbekin had 14 points and eight assists and Pat Young recorded his sixth double-double of the season for Florida.
The Gators (20-3, 10-1 Southeastern Conference) snapped a five-game losing streak in the series, and coach Billy Donovan improved to 2-7 against Kentucky’s John Calipari.
The Wildcats (17-7, 8-3) lost for the first time in six games, and it may have been costly.
Nerlens Noel, the nation’s leading shot-blocker, injured his left knee in the second half and did not return.
Noel, a freshman who averages 10.6 points, 9.6 rebounds and 4.5 blocks a game for Kentucky, landed awkwardly on his leg with about 8 minutes to play.