Freshman Jase Richardson poured in a season-high 20 points, fellow reserve Coen Carr had 14 points with eight rebounds and No. 8 Michigan State won its 12th in a row with an 81-74 result over Rutgers on Saturday afternoon in New York.
The Spartans (17-2, 8-0) remained the only unbeaten team in Big Ten Conference play by outshooting Rutgers 48.2 percent to 33.8 percent from the floor, including 60 percent to 35.9 percent in the second half.
Carr was 5-for-5 from the field as Michigan State’s sharp shooting helped it overcome a disparity in turnovers (15 to Rutgers’ six). Jaden Akins chipped in 12 points.
Jordan Derkack scored a season-high 26 points and Ace Bailey had 18 on 4-of-17 field-goal shooting for Rutgers (10-10, 3-6), which couldn’t prevail in a showcase game at Madison Square Garden.
Bailey added nine rebounds while fellow star freshman Dylan Harper was hampered by an ankle injury suffered Monday against Penn State. Harper was not in the starting lineup, scored six points in the first half and played two scoreless minutes in the second.
Bailey put up five early points to help set a 10-3 Rutgers lead. The Scarlet Knights proceeded to miss their next 11 attempts from the floor as the Spartans passed them by with a 16-1 run.
Michigan State was ahead 23-13 when Bailey made a turnaround jumper to end Rutgers’ field goal drought of 9:18. Derkack knocked down two 3-pointers and Harper grabbed a steal and fastbreak bucket as Rutgers clawed back.
Derkack’s three-point play tied the game at 28 but Carr answered with a thunderous alley-oop dunk. Richardson added five points in the final 1:10 to help the Spartans gain a 35-32 edge at intermission.
Rutgers drew within 41-39 with Lathan Sommerville’s first basket of the game, but Jeremy Fears Jr., Richardson and Carson Cooper put together a 6-0 run in response.
Later, Akins’ triple prompted a 7-0 Spartan sprint for Michigan State’s largest lead to that point at 56-44 with 9:48 to play. Carr added another flashy dunk, flying in alone from the left wing on a fastbreak.
Rutgers couldn’t get within single digits until the final two minutes, when Derkack stole a Spartans inbound play and made his third 3-pointer. Xavier Booker’s fastbreak dunk made it 73-63.
Derkack drilled a fourth three to cut it to six in garbage time before Michigan State put the game away.
–Field Level Media
