No. 10 Michigan St. lost at home to Northwestern – The Morning Sun

By LARRY LAGE

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) – Northwestern beat Michigan State at its game, pushing the limits of attack and hustling for loose balls to beat a top 10 team on the road for the first time in nearly five years.

Ryan Young had 18 points and eight rebounds, starting from where injured Pete Nance, to help the Wildcats hold off the 10th-ranked Spartans 64-62 on Saturday.

“We match their physicality and flexibility, which is a big key to winning,” said coach Chris Collins.

Northwestern (9-6, 2-4 Big Ten) won after Michigan State’s Malik Hall missed 3 pointers with 4 seconds left and Marcus Bingham missed the finish of one and one with seven sections left ten seconds.

The Spartans (14-3, 5-1) have won nine in a row, their longest winning streak since the 2018-19 season.

“They played harder, better,” said coach Tom Izzo.

How does that make the Hall of Fame coach feel when he knows he’s built a top-notch program by focusing on defense, bounce, and effort?

“I’ve been as poor as I am since I took this job.” Izzo has had this job since the 1995-96 season. “It’s one of the things we’re proud of ourselves for.”

Flipping the scenario over on Michigan State allows the Wildcats to become the first team to beat a top 10 team on the road while making only 34.8% of attempts since 2005 when Iowa State also shot poorly and still beat No. Kansas.

Chase Audige had 14 points and Boo Buie scored 12 for the Wildcats, whose previous win against a 10-team en route was February 12, 2017, against 17 Wisconsin. Northwestern ended their eight-game losing streak at Breslin Center, where their previous win was on January 21, 2009.

The Wildcats have lost four consecutive tight contests this season.

“This is a really important win for us after what we’ve been through here, it feels like we’ve been on the doorstep in three of those four games,” Collins said.

Nance, who averaged 17 points, missed the game because of an ankle injury.

Northwestern led most of the game, taking a seven-goal lead early in the second half and leading 62-57 with the remaining score at 2:34.

Julius Marble gave the Spartans a chance to win with a career-high 18 points. Hall and Gabe Brown each get 10 points. Freshman Max Christie was kept to six points, missing seven of eight shots, after averaging nearly 11 points per game.

Michigan State led 38-33 in the round, ending with a 4:47 drought without a basket and overturning the bet 12 times.

The Spartans wanted the second half to resemble their first meeting on January 2 at Northwestern, where they took a seven-goal lead in the first half before scoring 47 in the second to win 73-67.

In both Saturday innings, the Spartans struggled to take care of the basketball in a season-long problem.

Michigan State made 12 turns in the first half and finished with 17, with little chance to extend its winning streak that Izzo wasn’t excited about because of the team’s weakness.

“Disappointed? Very,” said Izzo. “Surprised? Not really. ”

Northwestern overtook Michigan State 40-35, which had a 17-8 advantage when fouls led to 16 second-chance points.

“We actually did our own work on the glass, which is a huge thing,” says Collins.

BIG PICTURE

Northwest: Collins helped his side beat a top 10 team for the first time since knocking out 4th-placed Sparta at home last season.

Izzo said: “If there is one person who deserves a big win besides Chris Collins, I don’t know him.

Michigan State: Slow start, coupled with sales, is testing Izzo’s patience and leading to losses. Since their win over Oakland last month in Detroit, Sparta have not played well in the first half.

“We didn’t come out ready to play and that caught up with us,” Brown said.

NO NANCE

Nance injured his ankle after scoring a career-high 28 points and had a career best record of 14 rebounds in a two-round loss to Maryland on Wednesday night.

“We have to be smart,” says Collins. “We cannot jeopardize him and the rest of the season. Hopefully, we’ll get a chance to have him on Tuesday night. ”

HINT POLL

Michigan State will enter the polls after beating Minnesota earlier this week and losing to a home team that won just one Big Ten game this season.

NEXT

Northwest: Hosts number 13 Wisconsin on Tuesday night.

Michigan State: Play Badgers on the Road on Friday Nights.

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