MSU head coach Tom Izzo was looking for better defense from his No. 10 Spartans on Tuesday night, after giving up 72 points in their first game.
Izzo got some defense and a lot of offense, in a 104-46 win over Wisconsin-Green Bay (1-1) at Breslin Center, while doing well in the three aspects he has been focusing on since the start of practices.
"It is encouraging that we went into the game with three objectives: to do a better job with our turnovers, do a better job with our rebounding and do a better job with our defense," Izzo said. "I think we improved in all three areas."
The Spartans (2-0) were in passing lanes, blocking, and seemed to be more intense on the defensive side of the ball. They blocked eight shots and had 10 steals.
In addition to getting better in those three areas, the Spartans pushed the ball down the floor every time they could, as quickly as possible. On one play, the ball did not touch the floor, going from out of bounds to freshman guard Drew Neitzel at half court, to junior guard Maurice Ager on the wing and then down low to junior center Paul Davis for a basket and the foul.
"They have to be one of the best transition teams I have ever had the chance to see in my coaching career," UW-Green Bay head coach Tod Kowalczyk said. "The Spartan athletes do a tremendous job of pushing the basketball."
The MSU fast-break offense led to easy baskets and the team broke the century mark with a little less than four minutes left in the game. It was the first time the Spartans have scored more than 100 points in back-to-back games since 1964.
Senior swingman Alan Anderson said MSU's improved depth allows the team to run from the beginning to the end of the game. It's a style of play Anderson prefers.
"It's fun," he said. "You get to see our athleticism."
Also for the second straight game, MSU had six players in double figures. In today's game, 11 players scored at least two points.
Anderson led the way with 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the field. Senior guard Kelvin Torbert and sophomore guard Shannon Brown chipped in 15 points each and the Spartans got a double-double from Davis, who had 16 points and 11 rebounds.
"You're not going to have games like this every game," Davis said. "But it's definitely something that we're shooting for. We're shooting for scoring 100 points; we're shooting for keeping opponents under 50."
MSU was on its way to a second straight triple-digit output at halftime and plenty of Spartans shared the scoring load. Four Spartans had eight or more points after the first half, led by Davis with 12 points. Brown had 10 points at the half.
MSU's 56-24 halftime lead was sparked by a 23-5 lead to start the game. Ager drained a three-pointer on MSU's first possession to open the floodgates.
The Spartans went on to shoot 53 percent from the floor in each half, including 10-of-21 from three-pointers.
UW-Green Bay struggled to do the simple things in the first half. The Phoenix committed 11 turnovers and was one-of-five from the free throw line in the opening half, leading to an insurmountable deficit.
Neitzel also scored his first basket as a Spartan in a regular-season game. He hit a 3-pointer about six minutes into the game.
"I was kind of hesitant the first game, not playing to my potential," Neitzel said. "Tonight, I think I did that. Throwing the lob when it's there, hitting guys in transition, taking my shot - that's something I think I struggled with in the first game."
The "lob" was an alley-oop pass to Ager that got the crowd rowdy seven minutes into the second half.
Neitzel finished with eight points on 3-of-6 shooting with five assists and zero turnovers. The first basket came after he was held scoreless in MSU's opener.
The Spartans' next game is noon Saturday against Nicholls State before they travel to face No. 9 Duke on Tuesday.
