EAST LANSING — It almost became a game of chicken, seeing who would shy away from the contact first.
And Purdue’s Nojel Eastern — all of 6-feet-6 and 220 pounds — applied plenty to the more diminutive Cassius Winston, basically from the opening tip.
Michigan State’s junior point guard did not flinch, flashing some Detroit determination of his own and showing how much the past 2½ years have developed his on-court toughness.
Winston scored nine of his game-high 23 points in the final 4 minutes of the first half, and his display of physical toughness in a rugged, throwback Big Ten brawl helped the sixth-ranked Spartans bully the Boilermakers for a 77-59 victory Tuesday night at Breslin Center.