Michigan State men’s basketball races back to earn first-ever win at Duke in the Champions Classic

USA TODAY Sports’ Scott Gleeson breaks down the latest men’s basketball coaches poll. USA TODAY

It might not have been how he imagined it, but Tom Izzo finally got his win at Duke.

Then again, it was every bit as pretty as the Michigan State men’s basketball’s coach dreamed with how his team did it.

There weren’t any fans at Cameron Indoor Stadium, and the 12th-ranked Spartans shook off a slow start to put a defensive stranglehold on the eighth-ranked Blue Devils in a 75-69 victory Tuesday night in Durham, North Carolina.

Rocket Watts scored 20 points in his first start of the season, and Joey Hauser and Malik Hall each had double-doubles as Izzo improved to 3-12 all-time against Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski.

Clampdown

MSU’s length and athletic ability on defense bothered Duke all night, particularly on the perimeter. The Spartans forced 12 turnovers with six steals, and they won the battle on the boards, 46s-40.

The Blue Devils were 5 of 23 from 3-point range and had made just 20 of 62 attempts to finish shooting 32.3%.

Henry played a versatile defensive game with five rebounds, three steals and all three of MSU’s blocks. He scored 14 points with five assists to offset his 7 of 21 shooting night.

Michigan State’s Aaron Henry blocks a shot by Duke’s DJ Steward in the Champions Classic at Cameron Indoor Stadium .

 (Photo: Reagan Lunn, Duke Athletics) Run and run

The Spartans opened the game sluggish and sloppy, missing shots and turning the ball over early. Duke raced out to a 13-3 lead, though seven of those points came at the free-throw line. MSU had three turnovers and five fouls in the first 4:20 of the game.

But the Spartans slowly started scoring, particularly after Malik Hall took a nasty fall after being pushed in the back by Duke’s Joey Baker, who was called for a flagrant foul.

Trailing 25-18, MSU went on a 19-6 run to take the lead for good late in the first half. Watts hit a pair of jumpers to start it, with Loyer’s 3-pointer tying the game at 29-all and

Henry had 10 of his points in the first half and the Spartans took a 37-31 lead into the locker room.

Coming out after the break, the Spartans took over with a 17-5 burst and built as big as a 16-point cushion.  

Surprise contributions

One of the big turning points when Foster Loyer, who came off the bench as Rocket Watts started, drew back to back charges in the first half to spark a comeback. Loyer took a third charge with MSU up 10 and 50 seconds to play, and the 6-foot junior also grabbed five rebounds.

Sophomore Julius Marble also made a major contribution with 12 points in 12 minutes on 5 of 5 shooting.

That helped on a night with plenty of balance. Hauser finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Hall added 10 points and 10 boards.

MSU players took turns taking over.

The Spartans (3-0) host Detroit Mercy at 5 p.m. ET on Friday at Breslin Center.

Follow the Detroit Free Press’ Chris Solari on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for the Spartans newsletter.

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