MSU Extends Win Streak in Dominant Victory over Maryland
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EAST LANSING, Mich. --- One of the Big Ten's best teams and one of the Big Ten's worst teams met on Saturday. It sure looked like it.
No. 10 Michigan State never trailed Maryland during its game on Saturday, crushing the Terrapins, 91-48. It's the Spartans' sixth consecutive win, extending the team's overall record to 18-2 and its Big Ten record to 8-1.
Point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. had another stellar game, finishing with 17 points and a career-high 17 assists. It's tied for the second-most assists in a game in MSU history, only behind Mateen Cleaves' 20 against Michigan in March 2000. Carson Cooper had another standout performance, scoring 14 points (with his first career made three-pointer) and pulling in eight rebounds.
MSU will hit the road next, as it takes on Rutgers (9-11 overall, 2-7 Big Ten) on Tuesday. Tip-off that day is set for 6:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
First Half
The Spartans ran away with this one nearly instantly. Things started relatively innocently, with MSU leading 6-4 a little less than three minutes into the game. Michigan State then floored the gas pedal, going on an 18-0 run that quickly opened up its lead to 20 points.
Tom Izzo shifted to a funky lineup at that point, which allowed Maryland to gather some momentum for the only time during the first half. The Terrapins had an 8-0 spurt and had their deficit down to 10 at one point, but any hope they had was short-lived.
MSU had its second lengthy run of the first 20 minutes right at that point. The Spartans scored the game's next 11 points, extending the home team's advantage to 21 points with a 39-18 score. Cooper made his first career three-pointer during that stretch.
Michigan State eventually went to the locker room doubling up Maryland, leading 46-23 at halftime. Fears already had 11 points and eight assists at that point. Cooper had nine points and six rebounds.
Second Half
It was more of the same during the final 20 minutes. Michigan State had gotten all the way out to a 35-point lead during the under-12 timeout and eventually went on a 15-0 run. Fears had ramped up his assist numbers during the early minutes of the second half, tying his career-high of assists, 13, with more than 15 minutes to go. He surpassed it shortly thereafter.
It was a pretty good show for all of the football recruits, who were taking up one of the sections usually reserved for the Izzone. Pat Fitzgerald and many assistants were in attendance for the team's "Junior Day" with recruits from the 2027 class.
MSU continued to outscore Maryland 2:1 until the last handful of minutes. It never even felt like Michigan State was doing anything super exotic, but it certainly felt like a game where nearly everything just clicked.
When the Spartans play like this, it's tough to see very many teams meaning them.
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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