Atlantic City, NJ (Sports Network) - Chris Allen scored 18 points and Raymar Morgan 17, as second-ranked Michigan State rebounded from its first loss by pummeling UMass, 106-68, in a consolation tilt at the Legends Classic.
Kalin Lucas added 16 points and five assists, and Korie Lucious had 13 points for the Spartans (5-1), who suffered their first defeat of the season Friday, a 77-74 setback at the hands of Florida.
Tom Izzo picked up career win No. 341 at Michigan State, passing his mentor, Jud Heathcote, as the program's winningest coach.
Anthony Gurley notched 24 points and Ricky Harris had 15 for the Minutemen (2-4), who have lost their last two games. Freddie Riley added nine points on a trio of three-point shots in defeat.
A quick 16-0 run early in the first half gave MSU an 18-8 lead, and the Minutemen went nearly five minutes through the middle stages without a point, allowing the margin to grow to 32-11.
From there, UMass regrouped with a nice stretch, and back-to-back layups by Harris had them back to within 45-34 with 2:05 to play. The Spartans, though, finished strong, and a Lucious three-pointer closed the half with Michigan State up, 55-38.
UMass had accumulated just seven points nearly seven minutes into the second half, and consecutive three-pointers by Allen for MSU ballooned the lead to 80-45 with 12:40 to play.
Michigan State was able to easily roll to victory from there.
Game Notes
Michigan State won its only previous meeting with UMass by a 93-45 final back in 1985...The Spartans shot 58.6 percent from the field compared with UMass' 38.2 percent showing...Terrell Vinson added eight points in the loss for the Minutemen, while Durrell Summers scored eight for Michigan State.
