NO. 3 MICHIGAN STATE 81, NO. 5 NOTRE DAME 63
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Tom Izzo is usually hard to please, consistently finding fault with his teams following victories.
After No. 3 Michigan State beat No. 5 Notre Dame 81-63 on Thursday night, he looked and sounded uncharacteristically happy after a game.
"I shouldn't complain about one thing," Izzo said.
And that, even for Izzo, would have been hard to do.
Joshua Langford scored 12 of his 17 points in the first half to help the Spartans lead 46-26 and they had to answer only one rally to earn a lopsided victory.
The Spartans (6-1) have won five consecutive, including a rout against then-No. 9 North Carolina to win a PK80 Invitational bracket, after losing to top-ranked Duke.
"Since that game, we've rebounded a little better," Izzo said.
Michigan State had 42 rebounds, twice as many as the Irish.
"They torched us," Notre Dame's Bonzie Colson said.
The Spartans held Notre Dame to 44 percent shooting, another factor that helped the home team have a 17-7 edge in fastbreak points.
"You defend, you rebound and you run -- that's been the staple of our program," Izzo said. "And if it ain't broke, don't fix it."
The Fighting Irish (6-1) cut their deficit to seven points with 13:09 left, but couldn't get closer against a team with a lot of options on offense that is defending and rebounding as if it is in mid-season form under its Hall of Fame coach. In the marquee matchup of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, the Spartans turned a highly anticipated game into a showcase of their talent and depth.
"They come at you with fresh bodies, they just keep coming at you and it takes its toll," Fighting Irish Coach Mike Brey said.
Michigan State's Cassius Winston had 17 points and 7 assists, Miles Bridges scored 14 points and Nick Ward added 12.
"They are a lot of people who can hurt you," Winston said. "It's probably pretty difficult to stop us."
Colson had 11 of his 17 points in the second half and Matt Farrell was scoreless in the first half and finished with 10 points. The duo was combining to average 38 points before the game.
"If they don't get it going early, the rest of our group, we get a little worried and concerned," Brey said. "I give Michigan State credit for taking away our two main weapons for really the first 15 minutes."
Rex Pflueger scored 15 and T.J. Gibbs added 11 points for the Irish.
NO. 9 TEXAS A&M 78, TEXAS-RIO GRANDE VALLEY 60
COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Texas A&M junior guards D.J. Hogg and Admon Gilder scored 17 points each and the ninth-ranked Aggies used a 16-0 start to defeat Texas-Rio Grande Valley.
Texas A&M (7-0) only led UTRGV (3-6) by 7 points with more than 7 minutes remaining before pulling away and staying undefeated on the season. UTRGV kept the game closer than many had anticipated through 3 1/2 quarters based on the Aggies' struggles from the free-throw line. Texas A&M made 18 of 30 from the free-throw line compared to 11 of 13 for the Vaqueros.
The Vaqueros cut the Aggies' lead to 57-50 on a short jumper by Mike Hoffman with 7:30 remaining, but the Aggies quickly responded on the other end when Tyler Davis found Tonny Trocha-Morelos wide open under the basket for a dunk and a 9-point lead.
That basket marked the first of nine consecutive points by A&M in putting away the Vaqueros down the stretch. UTRGV is coached by Lew Hill, a Texas A&M assistant from 1998-2004 under then-coach Melvin Watkins.
Texas A&M has won all of its games by double digits.
NO. 19 WEST VIRGINIA 102, NEW JERSEY INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY 69
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- Jevon Carter scored 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds and No. 19 West Virginia used an early second-half run to beat NJIT.
Carter had five steals that made him WVU's all-time leader with 255, passing Greg Jones' record set in 1983.
West Virginia (7-1) started the game sluggish, allowing NJIT to lead throughout the first 10 minutes of the game.
The Mountaineers then outscored NJIT (4-3) 31-14 to close out the first half and opened the second half with a 15-2 run to cruise to victory.
Teddy Allen added a career-high 16 points for the Mountaineers while Lamont West scored 13, James Bolden 12 and Wesley Harris 11.
Anthony Tarke led the Highlanders with 13 points and Diandre Wilson added 12.
SETON HALL 89, NO. 22 TEXAS TECH 79
NEW YORK -- Myles Powell scored seven of his 19 points in a span of 45 seconds to lift Seton Hall to a victory over No. 22 Texas Tech at Madison Square Garden.
Powell was one of four Seton Hall (6-1) players to finish in double figures. Desi Rodriguez finished with 24 points while Khadeen Carrington had 16 and Angel Delgado 12.
Keenan Evans led the Red Raiders (6-1) with 21 points while Jarrett Culver added 17, Zach Smith 12, Zhaire Smith 11, and Niem Stevenson 10.
Texas Tech entered the game fourth in the nation allowing 55 points per game.
Trailing by three at halftime, Seton Hall outscored Texas Tech 31-22 in the first 12:42 of the second half to take a 70-64 lead.
For a team possessing an interior presence in Delgado, Seton Hall was able to take a lead not by dumping the ball into the post but with its perimeter attack. The Pirates made 4 three-pointers and knocked down 7 jump shots in all during that stretch.
Sports on 12/01/2017