PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Last season, Tom Izzo wanted to leave Nick Ward in New Jersey after a poor game against Rutgers.
Friday night, Michigan State's coach and the rest of the Spartans were singing Ward's praises.
Cassius Winston scored 22 points and Ward added 20 to lead No. 9 Michigan State past Rutgers 78-69 in the Big Ten opener Friday night.
"He's just matured," Winston said of Ward. "He's grown mentally and that's helping his game a lot, so he was able to take his time passing the ball so teams can't really double team him like that.