EAST LANSING, Mich. _ Nick Ward said earlier in the week he had spoken with Magic Johnson recently and received advice.
Michigan State's junior forward put on a performance to make the basketball legend proud.
On a day the Spartans celebrated Magic and the 1979 national championship team, Ward shook off a recent funk and Matt McQuaid had a career game to help No. 9 MSU end its three-game losing streak with a 79-55 victory over Minnesota on Saturday afternoon at Breslin Center.
Ward finished with 22 points and nine rebounds while McQuaid's 18 points were his most in a Big Ten game for the Spartans (19-5, 10-3 Big Ten), who travel to No. 19 Wisconsin on Tuesday.
From the opening tip, it was clear Ward's mindset was to forget his previous three games, and actively attack the glass and defend.
The 6-foot-9 forward grabbed two rebounds and added an assist while making his first three shots in the opening 4 minutes. He had seven rebounds in the first 11 minutes and 10 points by half, thanks to aggressively posting up against Minnesota, which did not double-team him.
Ward also flashed a midrange game, with a baseline jumper in the first half and another from the wing early in the second half, as the Spartans used a 20-9 start after halftime and eventually raced to a 28-point lead on a Cassius Winston layup.
Overall, Ward made 9 of 14 shots and hit 4 of 7 free throws.
MSU has missed consistent shooting from the outside since Joshua Langford was ruled out for the season with a foot injury. His fellow co-captain McQuaid provided that against the Gophers.
McQuaid, who took seven shots and had only 10 combined points the past two games, looked like a different player than the one who had solely been producing at the defensive end in Langford's absence. The 6-foot-5 guard drove into the paint for baskets, drew fouls and hit from outside, finishing 6 of 9 overall and 4 of 6 from 3-point range. He added a career-high eight assists.
Defensively, McQuaid helped lock down Gophers guards Amir Coffey and Dupree McBrayer to 12 combined points. Minnesota shot 36.7 percent from the field, including 30.8 percent in the first half.
Winston, who finished with 11 points and nine assists, got in foul trouble midway through the first half. Senior forward Kenny Goins injured his left elbow early in the game and did not return after halftime, after briefly attempting to return after the injury.
That meant extended minutes for freshmen Thomas Kithier and Foster Loyer. And the two provided a spark.
Kithier scored six of his career-high eight points and had three rebounds in the opening half. Loyer operated the offense smoothly in Winston's absence for most of the final 10{ minutes, with McQuaid seeing action at point guard as well.
MSU also contained Gophers star big man Jordan Murphy, who had five points and six rebounds. Gabe Kalscheur had 17 points and Daniel Oturu added 12 points and seven rebounds for Minnesota (16-8, 6-7).
