EAST LANSING, Mich. — When Michigan State first took the court Thursday night at the Breslin Center to take on No. 23 Rutgers, it looked like the Spartans were still thinking about the one-point loss on Monday to No. 3 Purdue.
The Spartans were slow, missing shots and getting beat on the glass – a theme that never really changed all night. Before long, though, the grit Tom Izzo has praised all season returned, Michigan State started lighting it up from long range and even a rough night rebounding couldn’t keep the Spartans from snapping a two-game skid, earning a 70-57 victory over the Scarlet Knights.
Michigan State (13-6, 5-3 Big Ten) remains unbeaten at home against Rutgers and pulled into a second-place tie in the Big Ten with the Scarlet Knights.
A.J. Hoggard scored 16 and dished out seven assists to lead Michigan State while Joey Hauser scored 13. Tyson Walker added 12 points while Jaden Akins scored 11 and freshman Jaxon Kohler had career highs in points and rebounds, scoring 12 and pulling down 11 rebounds for his first career double-double.
Paul Mulcahy and Cliff Omoruyi each scored 12 for Rutgers (13-6, 5-3), which was 1-for-16 from 3-point range while the Big Ten Player of the Week, Cam Spencer, was 0-for-7 until making his only triple in the final seconds. Caleb McConnell added 11 for the Scarlet Knights while Omoruyi grabbed 12 rebounds as Rutgers had 18 on the offensive end.
It was all Rutgers in the early going as the Scarlet Knights opened a 14-5 lead while the Spartans looked out of sorts on both ends of the court. But just more than five minutes in, Michigan State ripped off seven straight points to pull within two and eventually took its first lead at 17-16 on a Hoggard 3-pointer with 11 minutes left in the half.
Rutgers responded with six straight points before Michigan State had a 6-0 run of its own to take a 23-22 lead. The Scarlet Knights then grabbed four offensive rebounds in two possessions to take a one-point lead before Hoggard’s second triple gave the Spartans a 28-26 lead with four minutes left in the half.
Hoggard’s second from long range was the first of three in a row for Michigan State as Hauser and Akins followed, giving the Spartans a 34-26 lead. The teams traded buckets over the final two minutes before Mulcahy hit a pair of free throws to cap the scoring and leave Michigan State ahead, 36-30, at the halftime break.
The Scarlet Knights continued to hammer the offensive glass in the second half, grabbing four on the first possession of the second half before finally getting a dunk from Omoruyi to pull within four of the Spartans.
Michigan State started to pull away later in the half with a 7-0 run capped by a Hoggard 3-pointer, giving the Spartans a 50-41 lead with 11:07 to play. Rutgers cut the margin to five but another Akins triple put Michigan State up, 55-47, with 7:52 left in the game.
Michigan State continued to extend the lead, going up 67-51 with 1:16 to play on a Walker 3-pointer, the largest lead of the game.
