Michigan State opened conference play with a dud of a performance at Northwestern, falling 79-65. The Spartans struggled from the opening tip and were outplayed by the Wildcats for most of the game.
Spartan killer Boo Buie was once again on fire against MSU, going off for 30 points on 9-15 shooting after scoring 26 in the meeting at Evanston last year.
On the flip side, the Spartan starting lineup struggled mightily, scoring just 32 total points. Rocket Watts missed his first nine shots and finished with just five points. Aaron Henry had an uneven performance and never seemed to get into a rhythm.