The Michigan State Spartans used a dominant first half and cruised to victory over Washington Huskies, 88-54, in the final game before students return to campus in East Lansing. The Spartans moved back into first place in the Big Ten with a 4-0 conference record and an overall record of 13-2.
Jaden Akins scored a game-high 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting, including 2-for-6 from three. Jeremy Fears and Jase Richardson both chipped in 12 points. Tre Holloman put up 11 points, all in the second half, included shooting 2-for-3 from deep.
Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper both grabbed seven rebounds, and Fears led all players with 10 assists, thus posting a double-double.
Just 46 seconds into the game, Washington forward Great Osobor drew a foul and split the pair of free throws to give the Huskies the early one-point lead. That would turn out to be the high point of the evening for the visitors from the Pacific Northwest.
Michigan State proceeded to go on a 16-0 run over the next five minutes and never looked back. The early run was capped off by a signature dunk by sophomore wing Coen Carr, much to the delight of the Izzone alumni in attendance.
Surprisingly, the Spartans came out of the locker hunting the three-point shot early. Michigan State’s first six shots and eight of the first 11 shots came from deep, with the Spartans hitting only two of them.
Coming into the game, the Huskies were ranked No. 23 nationally in limiting three-point attempts and fifth in opponent three-point percentage. While many of the Spartans' early shots from deep were open, they were shooting under 20% from deep with 7:30 to go in the first half.
After the early barrage from three-point land, the Spartans settled down and started to dissect the visiting Huskies both in the paint (20 first half points) and on the fast break (17 first half points).
In addition to the early 16-0 run, the Spartans also put together a 9-0 run as well as a 6-0 run in the first 20 minutes of action.
These runs were enabled by stifling Spartan defense. Washington seemed to struggle with the length of the Spartan big men inside, and the Huskies were ice cold from outside.
Washington missed the first 14 shots from the field and hit just five shots in the first half. The Huskies missed all seven first-half three pointers, and even struggled from the free throw line, going just 3-for-8 (37.5%) in the first 20 minutes.
Fears led all scorers at the half with 10 points and three assists. Akins scored nine points in the first half and Jaxon Kohler led all players with 7 rebounds as the Spartans took a 42-13 lead into the locker room.
The second half did not go any better for the Washington Huskies. The Spartans quickly pushed the lead to over 30 points and were on cruise control from there.
Michigan State shot the ball from deep much better in the second stanza, going 4-for-8. But cold shooting from deep in the first half resulted in a final tally of 7-for-21 (33.3%) for the game from three.
With 4:23 to play in the game, the Spartans stretched the lead to 41 points on a nifty fastbreak layup from Jase Richardson. But Coach Izzo started to empty the bench, and the Spartans finished the game with a 34-point win.
The Spartan limited turnovers in the first half to just four but were slightly more careless in the second half as they finished the game with 12 total giveaways.
MIchigan State finished the game with 28 fast break points and 44 points in the paint. Michigan State outrebounded the Huskies, 40-30, but managed just two second-chance points.
The Spartans were also lethal from the free throw line, hitting 17 of their 18 attempts (94.4%).
Next up for the Spartans is a trip to Evanston, Ill. to face the Northwestern Wildcats on Sunday afternoon. It will be a quick turnaround for the Green and White, but no Spartan played more than 25 minutes against Washington. The team should be well rested.
