Morgan Still Out; Does Not Matter...MSU Wins

ANN ABOR, Mich. -- Freshman Delvon Roe scored 11 of his season-high 14 points in the first half and Kalin Lucas had 13 of his 15 points after halftime, leading No. 9 Michigan State to a 54-42 win over Michigan on Tuesday night.

The Spartans (20-4, 10-2 Big Ten) have won three straight to open a 2½-game lead over Illinois and Ohio State, moving closer to their first conference championship since 2001.The Wolverines (15-10, 5-7) will have to finish the season strong, after beating Duke and UCLA, to play in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1998.Michigan, which trailed by eight at halftime and 12 early in the second half, pulled within four with 4:48 left but couldn't get closer.

DeShawn Sims scored 18 points while leading scorer Manny Harris had just seven on 2-of-10 shooting for the Wolverines after saying it was a must-win game.The Spartans have won 16 of 19 in the series.Michigan had won its last two home games against Michigan State but led the latest matchup just twice in the opening minutes.The Spartans were without second-leading scorer Raymar Morgan, who missed his third straight game recovering from a batch of illnesses, but are expecting him for their next game Tuesday night at Purdue.

Michigan State is 7-0 in true road games, joining Connecticut, Louisville and Utah State as the only undefeated Division I teams on opponents' home courts.The Wolverines have lost seven of their last nine and might've been tired against Michigan State, playing their third game in just six days.The Spartans scored the first five points of the game, then Michigan outscored them 8-2 to take the lead.One of Roe's four field goals in the lane put Michigan State ahead for good midway through the first half. His 11 points before halftime surpassed his previous best in a Big Ten game and were just two short of his previous career high. He finished with 10 rebounds, one short of his season best.

The Spartans led 23-15 at halftime despite a six-plus minute scoring drought that ended with Lucas' first points with 1:08 left in the half.Michigan made a meager 32 percent of its shots in the first half, made just two 3-pointers on 10 attempts and gave up nine points off eight turnovers. The Wolverines made 35 percent of their shots overall and missed 20 of 24 3-pointers.

via ESPN.com