Gary Harris scored 14 points and Keith Appling had 11 as the No. 4 Michigan State Spartans got by the Northwestern Wildcats, 54-40, at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
A Big Ten mismatch on paper turned out to be a close contest for the first 30 minutes until the Spartans (16-1, 5-0 Big Ten) pulled away for their ninth straight win.
Tre Demps led Northwestern (8-10, 1-3) with 12 points, but the Wildcats made just two field goals over the final 14-plus minutes in losing for the fifth time in six games.