Michigan State continued to flex its muscles as the top dog in the Big Ten with a 71-62 win over No. 11 Wisconsin. The eighth-ranked Spartans earned their fifth consecutive victory and their fourth over an opponent ranked inside the top-20 of the Associated Press Top 25 poll.
Throughout MSU’s recent surge, it seems a different Spartan has stepped up each game. On Sunday, it was senior guard and leading scorer Jaden Akins leading the way with 19 points. Akins hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the first half to get himself going and added two more before the end of the half. His 17-point first-half performance helped keep the Spartans afloat as the rest of the team shot just 7-of-25 and 2-of-11 from beyond the arc.
Wisconsin, though, adjusted to Akins in the second-half, but his teammates had his back. Jaxon Kohler scored seven of his 10 points in the second half and had a career-high 16 rebounds. Having dealt with early foul trouble, Jase Richardson locked in late, dishing three assists in the final four minutes. He finished with 11 points (eight in the second half) and six assists (all in the second half).
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Akins, who averages 12.9 points, had been under that mark in five of the last six games before Sunday’s resurgence.
Four days after holding No. 16 Maryland to 55 points, the Spartans defense was stellar again. They rank fifth in the country in 3-point defense (opponents shoot just 28.8% against them) and, on Sunday, they held Wisconsin to 5-of-32 (15.6%) from 3-point range, its worst outing from deep on the season. MSU also held Wisconsin’s leading scorer, John Tonje, to 11 points on 3-of-13 shooting, his worst performance since scoring zero points against USC on Jan. 18.
The Spartans (24-5, 15-3 Big Ten) have won five straight, putting them in position to contend for the conference championship with a week left in the regular season.
The Badgers (22-7, 12-6) had won six of seven and are now tied for third in the conference with the Terrapins.
Wisconsin’s John Blackwell had 19 points and seemed to miss guard Max Klesmit, who was out with a lower body injury.
The Badgers led by nine points early in the game and were ahead 34-32 at halftime. Richardson’s all-around game helped the Spartans take control early in the second half.
Key moment
In a 17-second stretch, Richardson had two assists and a steal to help Michigan State take a nine-point lead with 1:26 left.
Up next
Michigan State plays Thursday night at Iowa and wraps up the regular season at home Sunday against rival and 15th-ranked Michigan, likely with Big Ten title ramifications. Wisconsin plays Wednesday night at Minnesota and ends the regular season Saturday against Penn State at home.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
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