MSU locked down defensively and held the Badgers scoreless for more than 10 minutes to start the second half to defeat the Badgers 62-43 at Breslin Center and win its 12th straight game and 15th in a row at home.

“We ran our offense better and rebounded better,” head coach Suzy Merchant said of the turnaround. “I was really disappointed in our first 10 minutes because I thought that that was not the team that I had at that point. To their credit, we kind of gathered ourselves.”

Senior forward Kalisha Keane and junior guard Porsche Poole led four Spartans in double-figures with 12 each, and MSU outrebounded the Badgers, 45-21.

After free throws by freshman guard Klarissa Bell with 5:13 remaining in the first half, Keane tripled to bring the Spartans to within 20-15 with 4:24 remaining in the first half.

Bell scored and blocked a shot right after, and buckets by sophomore guard Jasmine Thomas and freshman guard Annalise Pickrel capped an 11-0 run before halftime.

Solid defense created opportunities early in the second half, with junior forward Lykendra Johnson scoring the first points in the half and Keane tripling before Wisconsin broke a 16-0 Spartans’ run with a basket by Alyssa Karel to make it 26-22.

“We were pretty focused in the locker room as to what got us successful,” Keane said. “Our mentality was very jacked up to come out and win this game because they have had our number… I think this team works really hard and with each other.”

However, MSU continued to create turnovers and hit its shots, extending its run to 32-4 by the 12-minute mark of the second half after a block by Poole eventually led to a basket by senior guard Brittney Thomas that made the score 42-24.

In recent games in this series the Badgers have pestered the Spartans with their tough defense, but the Spartans did the exact same to Wisconsin on Thursday in holding it to just above 32 percent shooting.

The Spartans, meanwhile, shot 57 percent in the second half and 48 percent for the game to move to 2-0 in the Big Ten.

Karel led all scorers with 16 points, while Tara Steinbauer finished with 10 for Wisconsin.

The Badgers (7-8, 2-1) made a late run to pull within 48-38, but a 10-1 Spartans’ run put them away.

Bell was a bright spot, mixing defensive energy with scoring touch in her 10-point performance, while Brittney Thomas also finished with 10, and on the boards Johnson led the way with 12, while Keane had 11.

“I’m working really hard at (defense),” Bell said. “I’m just trying to try not to foul and become a better defensive player.”

The Spartans next prepare for Michigan, which defeated three ranked teams in a row before losing against Purdue on Thursday, at noon Sunday in Ann Arbor.

For now the Spartans (14-1, 2-0) can be excited about having their best ever start in school history and keeping momentum from 12 straight wins, but they know the Wolverines will be hungry.

“The stakes are always high when U-M plays MSU,” Merchant said. “We’ll both elevate our games to a higher level, and we’ll see what happens.”