Needing a quality win to boost its postseason resume, Northwestern didn’t get it Wednesday in East Lansing.
Not even close.
Michigan State (12-2, 3-0 Big Ten) blitzed Northwestern (9-5, 0-3) in the first half, using an extended 37-16 run to blow the floodgates wide open and rout the Wildcats 81-55 to kick off 2019.
From the opening tip, the Spartans bullied the Northwestern bigs down low, and the fouls racked up for the Wildcats. As it has historically, Michigan State pounded Northwestern on the glass (mostly defensively) and in the paint, out-rebounding NU 48-25 and outscoring NU 52-28 on points in the paint.