The Spartans finished 17-32 from long range, with six different players contributing.

With his mom’s jersey hanging in the rafters at Mackey Arena, sophomore guard Gary Harris had another big night against a team from his home state, scoring 25 points and grabbing three rebounds to lead MSU.

Harris had been working to shake off a bad shooting slump stretching across the past several games, including a 3-of-20 shooting performance on the road at Wisconsin earlier this month.

Senior center Adreian Payne added 23 points of his own, while senior guard Keith Appling dished out nine assists.

Appling showed signs of shaking off the rust that had plagued him in his last outing.

MSU had 26 assists on 30 made field goals.

The Spartans came out in the first half with a shooting mindset, only attempting two shots from inside the arc, and going 13-of-19 from three-point land.

Six of MSU’s first ten shots were from beyond the arc, and it took until nearly the nine minute mark for them to make a two-point field goal.

After not starting for the fifth straight game, Appling made his first appearance with just over 16 minutes left in the half.

On his first possession, he brought the ball down the floor and executed a pick and roll before finding Payne for a wide-open three-pointer.

MSU got out to a 13-7 lead, but the Boilermakers fought back to tie it after six straight points from freshman Kendall Stephens.

But MSU went on a quick 9-0 run behind three consecutive three-pointers from Payne, sophomore guard Gary Harris and junior guard Travis Trice.

The second half was less impressive for the Spartans as they only made four triples, but still outscored the Boilermakers 45-41.

Purdue clawed their way back in it as the second half wore on, going on an 8-2 run to get within 11 points.

But the hot MSU shooting was too much for the Boilermakers to overcome.

Next up for the Spartans is a battle for the Big Ten lead when they travel to Ann Arbor to take on rival Michigan at noon on Sunday.