The No. 21 MSU men’s basketball team (2-1) responded with a 17-4 run to gain a double-digit lead and never looked back, rolling Texas Southern (1-3) 69-41 in the Spartans’ home opener.

It was a sloppy beginning to the game, as MSU turned the ball over three times in the game’s opening three and a half minutes before Denzel Valentine came off the bench to give the Spartans a lift.

The freshman guard had a number of nifty assists — including a no-look pass to freshman forward Matt Costello to set up a layup — along with following a miss from sophomore guard Branden Dawson with a rim-rattling jam that brought the crowd to its feet.

Valentine finished with eight points, five assists and three rebounds as MSU headed to halftime in front 40-19, but it was another freshman guard who stole the show for MSU.

Gary Harris poured in 14 first half points before finishing with a game-high 19 points to lead the way for the Spartans.

It was a runaway for MSU in the second half, as the Spartans never led by fewer than 21 points, with the lead swelling to as many as 32 points.

Dawson had a strong second half as one of two Spartans to score in double figures, finishing with 13 points and six rebounds.

Senior center Derrick Nix added six points and a team-high 11 rebounds after missing the opening nine and a half minutes for undisclosed reasons.

MSU will return to action Tuesday (8:00 p.m., Big Ten Network) when they host Boise State (2-0) at Breslin Center.