Michigan State erases 27-point deficit, beats Northwestern
ROSEMONT, Ill. — Cassius Winston scored 17 points, and No. 2 Michigan State erased a 27-point deficit on Saturday to beat Northwestern 65-60 and extend its winning streak to 10 games.
Gahanna graduate Nick Ward added 15 points and 10 rebounds. Miles Bridges hit four free throws in the final minute, and the Spartans (26-3, 14-2 Big Ten) used a huge second half to pull out the win after they looked like they were headed to a stunning loss.
Vic Law cooled off after a blistering start to finish with 21 points, and Northwestern (15-13, 6-9) made just 3 of 26 field goals in the second half.
The Wildcats gave themselves a great chance at their first win over a top-5 team since 1979 even though star guard Bryant McIntosh sat out with a shoulder injury.
They led by as much as 27 and were up 49-27 after a stunning first half that had fans chanting “Overrated!” But the Spartans — tied with Ohio State for the Big Ten lead coming into the game — turned it around after halftime.
They outscored Northwestern 29-4 over the first 14 minutes, tying it on Ward’s tip-in and taking their first lead of the game at 56-53 on Jaren Jackson’s three-point play with 5:26 remaining.
The Wildcats went more than 11 minutes without scoring before Dererk Pardon hit two free throws with just over five minutes left.
With the Spartans clinging to a two-point lead in the final minute, Bridges hit two free throws and Winston added two more to make it 63-57. Law nailed a three for Northwestern to make it a threepoint margin with 11.4 seconds remaining, but Bridges hit two more free throws.
MARYLAND 61, RUTGERS 51: Bruno Fernando had 18 points and a career-high 16 rebounds, and host Maryland (18-11, 7-9) beat Rutgers (13-16, 3-13). The Terrapins scored the game’s first 10 points, led 31-19 at halftime and opened the second half with another 10-0 run to pull away.
INDIANA 84, IOWA 82: Robert Johnson scored a career-high 29 points on nine three-pointers and Indiana (16-12, 9-7) rallied from an early 13-point deficit and then held off Iowa (12-17, 3-13), picking up its fourth straight victory.