East Lansing, MI (SportsNetwork.com) - Gary Harris dropped 20 of his 24 points in the second half in third-ranked Michigan State's 71-66 triumph over Indiana from Breslin Center.
Harris, who made 4-of-6 from the arc, scored a career-high 26 points in a win over Indiana on Jan. 4. Michigan State (18-1, 7-0 Big Ten) completed the season sweep after dropping both meetings a season ago.
"What an incredible performance by him, again. Thirteen shots - it's not like he's getting a lot of shots. He's the most efficient player right now maybe in college basketball," Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said of Harris.
Branden Dawson added 13 points and nine boards in the victory, while Denzel Valentine and Travis Trice netted 10 points apiece.
Yogi Ferrell dropped 19 points to lead the Hoosiers (12-7, 2-4), who lost their second straight game. Noah Vonleh contributed his second straight double-double with 13 points and 13 boards.
"I'm proud of my team to be honest with you, because I think we really did a great job the last couple days of establishing even more togetherness and it showed tonight, and we did some really good things," Indiana head coach Tom Crean said.
Harris surpassed his first half output a minute into the second when he scored six quick points to put the Spartans back on top after they trailed by one at halftime.
The Hoosiers took advantage of five MSU turnovers in six possessions midway through the period, with Troy Williams' swooping layup capping their 10-2 run for a 46-41 lead.
The Spartans regrouped out of a timeout. Harris worked his way to the free throw line and made a pair on the front end of a 21-6 Michigan State spurt. His 3-pointer plus a Valentine foul shot put the finishing touches on the run, which had the hosts in front 62-52 at the final media timeout.
Indiana fought back to within three points after a Stanford Robinson runner with 16 seconds left, but Trice made two clutch free throws for Michigan State and the best Indiana could do on its next possession was a Robinson dunk with 5.1 ticks remaining. Valentine hit his free throws out of a timeout to secure the outcome.
Earlier, Vonleh scored or assisted on the first five baskets for IU. Both teams shot 40 percent while combining for 21 fouls in a balanced first half that featured eight lead changes. The Hoosiers led 28-27 after a pair of Ferrell free throws capped off a low scoring first period.
Game Notes
Both teams were shorthanded for this one. Indiana was missing forward Will Sheehey (ankle), while Michigan State was without big man Adreian Payne (foot) ... Michigan State has won 43 of its last 46 home games ... MSU improved to 6-0 when trailing at halftime this season ... Harris had five steals for the third time this season ... Indiana still leads the all-time series, 67-50.
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