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Green, Spartans bury Badgers, stay perfect at home

Feb 17, 2012 - 5:38 AM East Lansing, MI (Sports Network) - Draymond Green had 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, as the seventh-ranked Michigan State Spartans handled the 15th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers, 69-55.

Keith Appling also ended with 20 points for the Spartans (21-5, 10-3 Big Ten), who are now tied with Ohio State atop the conference standings. Michigan State beat the Buckeyes on Saturday.

Derrick Nix donated 12 points for the Spartans, who improved to 16-0 at home this season.

"The crowd was awesome," Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said.

Ryan Evans tallied 17 points and seven boards for the Badgers (19-7, 8-5), who have lost two of three. Jordan Taylor and Jared Berggren added 13 and 10 points, respectively.

Evans made two free throws and a jumper to give Wisconsin a 12-8 lead with 9:51 left in the first half.

But Michigan State responded with a 14-0 run to take control of the game. Green tallied seven points during the burst, which Appling capped with a three-point play to make it 22-12 with 5:24 remaining.

The Spartans used a 7-0 spurt moments later to extend their margin. Appling bookended the flurry with a layup and slam to give the home team a 31-17 edge.

Taylor's jumper cut the gap to 31-19 at the break.

Michigan State continued to dominate in the second half and held a 58-37 margin with seven minutes to play.

"He's done a great job with this team," Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan said of Izzo. "It's the truth."

The Badgers tried to get back in the game with a 14-2 run. Rob Wilson and Evans each made three-pointers during the surge to help get Wisconsin within nine, 60-51, with 3:14 left.

Michigan State went 9-for-12 from the foul line down the stretch to seal the victory.

Game Notes

The Spartans lead the all-time series by a 71-60 margin. Michigan State claimed a 63-60 overtime triumph over Wisconsin on January 3rd...The Spartans shot 52.2 percent from the field and went 19-for-25 from the foul line, while the Badgers shot 34 percent and went 14-for-14 from the charity stripe.