The Spartans were glad to have a productive Alan Anderson back.
"I was really happy for Alan Anderson, coming back off his worst game as a Spartan to maybe one of his best, if you look at his total line," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said.
Coming off a zero-point, four-foul, two-turnover, one-assist performance in 10 minutes against Purdue, the junior swingman scored 12 points, dished out six assists and had two steals, leading the Spartans to a 66-56 victory over Northwestern on Saturday.
The win keeps MSU (15-9 overall, 10-3 Big Ten) in sole possession of first place in the conference, a half-game ahead of Illinois (18-5, 9-3).
After shooting 40.9 percent against Purdue, the Spartans regained their stroke, shooting 54 percent (27 for 50) against Northwestern. The Wildcats shot 46.5 percent, but were just two for 16 (12.5 percent) behind the 3-point line.
Four Spartans scored in double figures, led by junior guard Chris Hill's 16 points. Sophomore center Paul Davis had 15 points with six rebounds, and sophomore guard Maurice Ager and Anderson had 14 and 12 points, respectively.
Junior guard Kelvin Torbert had seven points and grabbed a team-high eight rebounds to go along with three assists and two steals.
"That's the good thing about this team - we're so well-rounded," senior center Jason Andreas said. "It's good to have that well-roundedness. If someone has a bad game, you know someone else is going to step up."
MSU's offense clicked from the opening tip, jumping to a quick 7-2 lead. Three of Northwestern's first four baskets, however, were dunks off unforced turnovers.
Northwestern (11-12, 6-6) cut the MSU lead to 30-28 just a minute into the second half, but then the Spartans began dominating. MSU would lead by as many as 17 points before Northwestern finished the game on a 9-2 run.
Northwestern head coach Bill Carmody was pleased with his catalyst, but he said turnovers were too powerful for his Wildcats to overcome.
"This is a pretty good team, and they don't lose here too often," he said.
As the team heads into three tough contests against Michigan on Tuesday, Penn State on Saturday and the Big Ten finale against Wisconsin at Breslin Center, the Spartans know they have work to do.
"We're going to have to play better on Tuesday and here on out if we want to do what we want to do," Izzo said. "I'm getting a little tired of saying that, because I think it goes on deaf ears.
"I know what it takes to win a championship; they don't."
