Jaxon Kohler racked up 21 points and 13 rebounds as No. 13 Michigan State stretched its winning streak to four games with a 77-64 win over slumping Indiana on Sunday afternoon in Bloomington, Ind.
Jeremy Fears Jr. also scored 21 points and dished out nine assists for Michigan State (24-5, 14-4 Big Ten). Fears had 23 points and 10 assists in the Spartans’ 81-60 home victory over the Hoosiers this season.
Kur Teng supplied 18 points, all on 3-pointers, for Michigan State.
Lamar Wilkerson carried the Hoosiers (17-12, 8-10) with 29 points. Tucker DeVries contributed 20 points with six rebounds but Indiana’s losing streak increased to four games.
Bench scoring was a huge factor, as Michigan State outscored Indiana in that category 22-0, with most of those points coming from Teng.
Overall, the Spartans shot 49% while the Hoosiers were held to 39.3% shooting. Michigan State made half of its 24 3-point attempts and outrebounded Indiana, 35-27.
The Spartans had their first double digit lead at 21-10 when Cameron Ward made a layup eight minutes and change into the contest.
Teng hit a 3-pointer with 4:24 left in the half to give Michigan State a 13-point lead. The Hoosiers then had an 8-2 spurt, including five points from Wilkerson.
The Spartans were still up 45-37 at halftime, with Kohler and Teng combining for 26 points.
Kohler hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key off a kickout from Fears to give Michigan State a 48-38 lead. Wilkerson’s 3-pointer with 13:41 to go pulled Indiana within 54-48. Another Wilkerson 3-pointer made it a five-point spread at 60-55.
The Spartans then scored seven consecutive points, capped by Coen Carr’s putback. Following a Wilkerson layup with 6:34 left to make it 72-62, neither team scored for more than three minutes until DeVries made a jumper.
Fears knocked down a jumper with 1:25 left to restore the Spartans’ 10-point advantage.
