
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) Cassius Winston scored 22 points and Nick Ward had 20 points to lead No. 9 Michigan State past Rutgers 78-69 in the Big Ten opener Friday night.
After a back-and-forth first half, where Rutgers led much of the first 10 minutes, Winston hit a 3-pointer to give Michigan State (5-2) the 39-37 lead over Rutgers (5-2) at the break.
Rutgers would open the second half with a 3-pointer by Peter Kiss from the top of the arc to retake the lead, but a quick 6-0 run from Michigan State caused Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell to call timeout down 45-40 with 17:54 to go. The deficit would eventually balloon to 13.