EAST LANSING, Mich. — Coach Tom Izzo remains adamant about two things: Michigan State continues to possess an exceptionally high ceiling and remains a work in progress.
Many of the glaring problems popped up again Wednesday night against Nebraska —another sluggish start, inexplicable turnovers, poor free-throw shooting.
Many of the Spartans’ persistent positives did, too — smothering defense, aggressive rebounding, smooth ball movement, timely scoring. And most importantly, another second-half pull away to a grinding Big Ten victory.
No. 10 MSU won its eighth straight, overcoming 19 turnovers, with a dominating thrashing on the glass en route to a 79-67 win over the Cornhuskers at Breslin Center.
Max Christie had a career high 21 points and Gabe Brown scored 14 as the Spartans shot 51.8% overall and went 8 for 17 from 3-point range.
But it was a 39-27 rebounding advantage, turning 11 offensive boards into 16 second-chance points to help offset Nebraska’s 20 points off MSU turnovers.
The Spartans (13-2, 4-0 Big Ten) travel to Michigan for a 2:30 p.m. rivalry renewal at Crisler Center in Ann Arbor on Saturday.
Tyson Walker, held scoreless in the first half, hit a pair of 3-pointers early in the second period, and Christie added another in the first 3:58 of the second half to give MSU some breathing room. Christie had 12 points, and Walker scored 10 after halftime and finished with five assists as MSU shot 47.1% in the final 20 minutes. Malik Hall added eight of his 12 points in the second half.
Four players scored in double figures for Nebraska (6-9, 0-4), led by 16 from forward Derrick Walker Jr. Bryce McGowens added 13, Kobe Webster 11 and C.J. Wilcher 10.
After struggling in the first half of Sunday’s hard-fought 73-67 win at Northwestern, the Spartans spent the following days focusing on putting together a start-to-finish performance.
That dream died quickly, as MSU committed 11 turnovers in the first 9 minutes, 16 seconds and found itself in a dogfight from the start. Nebraska used active hands and quick feet to generate seven steals, but the Spartans also looked lackadaisical with passes and created many turnovers on their own.
Still, Christie got seven of his nine first-half points in the first 3-plus minutes, including a put-back dunk to blow open the game. Brown scored all 10 of his points in the final 10-plus minutes, including a 3-pointer and a steal and dunk as part of a 7-2 run over the last 2:26 to send MSU into half with a 38-34 lead.
The Spartans had just one turnover after the horrendous start, which turned into 12 points for the Cornhuskers. MSU also scored nine points off eight Nebraska giveaways and had a 10-2 edge in second-chance points, thanks to a 19-11 domination on the boards.
MSU used 54.8% shooting to seize the lead despite the problems, while the Spartans limited Nebraska to just 3 for 11 from 3-point range, though the Huskers made 48.4% overall.
The Spartans’ point guards struggled. Walker missed both of his first-half shots, went scoreless and had two turnovers to three assists. A.J. Hoggard was 2 for 3 with a pair of rebounds and an assist, but he also committed four turnovers, including the Spartans' 12th of the half with 50 seconds left before the break.
Hoggard finished with seven turnovers, six points and three assists in 20 minutes. Walker did not commit a turnover after halftime.
Defensively, MSU turned 15 Nebraska turnovers into 16 points and had 13 steals along with five blocks.
