The battle between Michigan State’s Cassius Winston and Northwestern’s Boo Buie ended in a draw, as the Big Ten’s preseason player of the year engaged in an entertaining duel with the Wildcats freshman point guard.
Buie was unstoppable in stretches, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers and flipping one in over his right shoulder during a second-half run.
In the end Buie’s 26 points were not enough to lead the Wildcats to an upset of 15th-ranked Michigan State, which won 77-72 before a mixed crowd Wednesday night at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Here are seven takeaways from what Michigan State coach Tom Izzo called “a strange game.” Maybe, but it had a predictable result.
1. Northwestern is trending up.
The group that face-planted in home losses to Merrimack and Radford trailed Michigan State by just four points with 21 seconds to play.
“When we saw Northwestern on film, we said, ‘Boy, do we like the pieces they have,’ ” Izzo said.
And after facing them?
“These kids are going to be really good,” Izzo said. “I told Chris (Collins) that, and I’m not saying it (in the interview) room just for show. Things are going to start hopping here.”
The Wildcats (5-5, 0-2 Big Ten) are the conference’s youngest team.
“I’m satisfied with how we fought,” Collins said. “But you guys know, I don’t like losing.”
2. Northwestern got killed on the boards.
More damning than the overall margin (48-24) were the 14 offensive rebounds the Spartans grabbed. And several came in key moments down the stretch, like when Malik Hall threw down a miss.
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“We’ve got to gang rebound,” NU forward Pete Nance said. “Everyone needs to box out.”
Michigan State’s 16 turnovers kept Northwestern in the game.
3. Ryan Young will have to prove he can pick on players his own size.
The 6-foot-10 redshirt freshman went for 25 points and 12 rebounds in Northwestern’s last game against SIU Edwardsville. But he scored only three points at Purdue, got shut out by Pittsburgh and couldn’t get much going against the Spartans, finishing with six points in 29-plus minutes.
4. Boo Buie put on a show.
He scored 21 of his 26 points in the second half and hit 5 of 7 from 3-point range. Asked if he was in the zone, Buie played the team-first card, replying, “I think we were all in the zone.”
Collins said Buie was “fantastic” and revealed that his shooting in previous games was affected by a right thumb injury. The 6-2 freshman looked whole Wednesday.
“He was unbelievable,” Izzo said. “He made some really tough shots and some deep shots.”
5. Cassius Winston looked more like himself.
The veteran point guard has struggled to focus in the wake of his brother’s Nov. 9 death. Coming off a 3-for-13 shooting performance against Oakland, he set the tone against Northwestern by hitting two 3s in the first minute. He finished with 21 points and six assists.
“It’s fun to see him with a smile on his face in the locker room,” Izzo said after his team improved to 8-3, 2-0.
The Spartans became the only road team to win one of the Big Ten’s 14 December conference games. That resulted in a 12-way tie for second at 1-1 between Michigan State and Northwestern.
6. Pete Nance is feisty.
Northwestern suspended him for the SIU Edwardsville game for a “failure to adhere to program standards.”
“It’s a mistake I made,” he said, “and we dealt with it.”
Nance finished with 14 points and seven rebounds, showing the bounce and intensity that made him a top-100 recruit. Maybe a little too much intensity at times.
He almost got a technical foul with eight minutes to play for arguing a loose-ball foul.
“I let the heat of the moment get to me,” he said. “I can’t yell at (the official) like that and I won’t do it again.”
Collins said he wants more poise regarding the officials but said of Nance: “I like his energy and where he is headed. He is getting better at playing through contact. He’s a big part of our future, everyone knows that.”
7. Northwestern’s next game could be a blast.
The Wildcats head to Wintrust Arena on Saturday night to take on 11-1 DePaul. Comebacks and tight finishes have become commonplace in the series.
“Pretty much every game has gone down to the wire in my time here,” Collins said. “We’ve had hard-fought, competitive games, and this one is coming at the right time, before the holidays. It’s good for the area. And they are having a terrific year. It will be a big test for us, a high-level game.”