Michigan State rolls Iowa in 2nd-half slaughter

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- A competitive first half for Iowa turned a disastrous second half and a predictable outcome.

After trailing by only four at halftime, Iowa failed to match Michigan State at either end of the floor and fell apart in an 85-66 loss at Breslin Center tonight.

Iowa (10-19, 3-14 Big Ten) missed all 12 3-point attempts and hit only 20-of-33 from the free-throw line. Michigan State (17-12, 9-8) hit 54.5 percent from the field in the game and its bench outscored Iowa's 42-12.

Matt Gatens and Melsahn Basabe each scored 13 points to lead Iowa. Bryce Cartwright had 11 points, six assists and four rebounds. Jarryd Cole had 10 points, six rebounds and five steals.

Michigan State's Keith Appling led all scorers with 18 points, while outgoing senior Kalin Lucas added 17 points and six assists.

It was Iowa's 17th straight loss at Michigan State, dating to 1993. The Spartans outscored the Hawkeyes 49-34 in the second half.

Here's the first-half recap:

Iowa weathered through a tough first-half perimeter performance but trails Michigan State 36-32 at Breslin Center.

The Hawkeyes missed all six of their 3-point attempts in the first half, including four by Matt Gatens. But Iowa hit nearly half its shots -- 13-of-28 -- and had only three turnovers.

Michigan State shot 15-of-27 from the floor and hit 4-of-9 3-point shots. Michigan State's bench accounted for 25 of the Spartans' 36 points. Guard Keith Appling came off the bench to hit three 3-pointers and leads all scorers with 11 points.

Bryce Cartwright leads the Hawkeyes with eight points. He also had three rebounds and three assists.

There were four lead changes and two ties in the first half. Iowa cut its deficit to one point at 33-32 with 59 seconds left on a Gatens' layup. Then Michigan State's Derrick Nix drove the lane and plowed over Iowa freshman Zach McCabe for a basket plus a foul. Nix hit the free throw to push Michigan State up by four with 32.8 seconds left. McCabe left the game.

On Iowa's final offensive possession, Devyn Marble whiffed on an open 3-point attempt that went out of bounds with less than one second left.