No. 21 Michigan Beats No. 3 Michigan State 80-75
LARRY LAGE, AP Sports Writer
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Nik Stauskas made a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 3:12 left and finished with 19 points and freshman Derrick Walton Jr. scored a season-high 19, lifting No. 21 Michigan to an 80-75 win over No. 3 Michigan State on Saturday night to remain the only Big Ten team without a conference loss.
The Wolverines (15-4, 7-0 Big Ten) went on a 10-0 run late in the game to take control and held on to win for just the second time in 15 games at the Breslin Center.
Michigan is the first team since at least the 1996-97 season to win three straight games against top-10 teams in the regular season, according to STATS. It was coming off a win against No. 10 Iowa at home after beating then-No. 3 Wisconsin on the road.
The Spartans (18-2, 7-1) had won 11 straight since losing to North Carolina at home.
Michigan State's Gary Harris scored a career-high 27 points and didn't get much help offensively from his team that was without two of its best players. Freshman Alvin Ellis scored a season-high 12 points, surpassing his scoring total from his first seven Big Ten games.
Keith Appling was held to 10 points on 3 of 11 shooting, a setback for a team that was without two of its best players. Adreian Payne missed a fifth straight game with a sprained right foot and Branden Dawson was out for the first time since he said he broke his right hand hitting a table.
Michigan, though, didn't have any sympathy.
The Wolverines, who lost Trey Burke and Tim Hardaway Jr. early to the NBA, have been playing without standout center Mitch McGary because he needed back surgery.
Caris LeVert scored 17 for the Wolverines and made a trio of his team's 11 3-point shots on 19 attempts.
Michigan also scored on second-chance points, turning 11 offensive rebounds into 15 points as it outrebounded the Spartans 34-30.
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