Ann Arbor — Michigan started March off with a bang. Sophomore center Hunter Dickinson made sure of it.
A monster night from Dickinson. Lights-out shooting. Revenge in the rivalry rematch. The Wolverines got it all as they pounded Michigan State, 87-70, and kicked off the final week of the regular season with a critical victory.
“(Assistant coach) Saddi (Washington) was telling us yesterday you’ve got to bring your alter ego,” Dickinson said. “For me, I’m trying to go out there and play with that emotion on my sleeve and be the best me out there.”
BOX SCORE: Michigan 87, Michigan State 70
Dickinson brought that version Tuesday at Crisler Center. He was fiery. He was animated. He recorded a career-high 33 points. He finished a rebound shy of a double-double. He shot 13-for-19 from the floor. He drew nine fouls.
Simply put, he did it all as he led the charge for Michigan (16-12, 10-8 Big Ten), which shot 58.2% from the field (32-for-55) and led by double figures over the final 27 minutes.
“He showed why he’s an All-American and should be a first team All-American this year,” sophomore forward Terrance Williams II said. “He’s doing it inside-out. He’s rebounding. He’s leading the team. We just follow behind him and he gives us energy.”
After putting together a dominant first half that was fueled by Dickinson, Michigan never let up. Dickinson kept pounding away in the paint. Freshman forward Caleb Houstan (16 points) scored seven straight points in 58 seconds. The Wolverines’ lead swelled to 55-33 with 17:40 to play.
Gabe Brown got hot and did his best to breathe some life into Michigan State (19-10, 10-8), knocking down a pair of deep balls and a jumper within the first four minutes of the half. But it hardly made a dent in the deficit, as Dickinson kept feasting on one-on-one matchups.
When Michigan’s offense slowed down for a stretch, Michigan State started to gain steam. The Spartans fought back with a 14-5 run that featured three baskets by Mady Sissoko and ended with a jumper by Max Christie, trimming Michigan’s lead to 67-55 with 8:00 remaining.
The Wolverines turned to Dickinson to keep the Spartans at bay and he delivered. He scored 10 straight points for Michigan and refused to let the game unravel in the second half like it did in the first meeting in East Lansing earlier this season.
“I think up at Michigan State in the second half, we settled a lot,” said Williams, who made three 3-pointers. “We were settling and weren’t defending, Today, we defended way better and we weren’t settling. That just comes with Hunter dominating in the paint, feeding it in to him and letting him work.”
Dickinson threw down a trio of rim-rattling dunks down the stretch to keep Michigan State in a double-digit hole. The first came off a pick-and-roll feed from grad transfer guard DeVante’ Jones. The second came on a baseline drive while being fouled.
Then after Michigan State pulled within 12 once again, he provided the finishing touches by throwing down a one-handed jam to make it 77-63 with 4:10 to go. The lead never dipped below 14 points the rest of the way.
Brown finished with 12 points and Tyson Walker scored 11 for Michigan State, which shot 45.8% from the field (27-for-59). The loss snapped a two-game win streak in the rivalry series for the Spartans and denied Michigan State coach Tom Izzo’s bid to surpass Bobby Knight as the Big Ten’s all-time winningest coach.
“We were poor defensively and it didn’t seem like we guarded anybody,” Izzo said. “They played better than us, shot better than us, moved the ball better than us. We were supposed to double down in the post some after halftime and we didn’t do it. The better team won tonight.”
More: ‘The better team won’: MSU continues tailspin in 87-70 loss to rival Michigan
Both teams came roaring out of gate during a frantic start that featured a flurry of offense. Michigan State made four of its first six shots and Michigan has its first five attempts. But once the Spartans cooled off and missed a string of shots, the Wolverines stayed hot and ripped off a 16-2 run.
Brown fouled Houstan on a 3-point attempt to kick off the spurt with three free throws. Dickinson added a bucket in the paint. Fifth-year senior guard Eli Brooks followed with a pair of driving layups.
Williams buried a 3-pointer from the wing and freshman guard Frankie Collins — who took over at the point after Jones picked up two fouls less than three minutes into the game — dumped off a pass to Dickinson at the rim to cap a stretch of 14 unanswered points.
But things didn’t get much better for Michigan State by the end of the run. After Walker snapped a four-minute scoring drought with a mid-range jumper, Brown picked up his second foul and senior forward Brandon Johns Jr. made two free throws to give Michigan a 25-13 lead with 11:43 left in the first half.
The Wolverines continued to get whatever they wanted on offense and the Spartans had no answers for Dickinson. The big man keyed an 11-2 spurt with three baskets in the paint — on a hook shot, dunk and offensive putback — before Williams drained a corner 3-pointer, pushing Michigan’s lead to 44-26 en route to a 16-point halftime advantage.
The Wolverines never relinquished control the rest of the way as they started a crucial closing stretch on the right foot and gave their postseason hopes a needed boost.
“Hopefully they can stop putting us on the (NCAA Tournament) bubble,” Dickinson said. “Hopefully we can cement ourselves and not be as nervous come Selection Sunday.
“It’s starting to get close to not having many opportunities to amp up…and trying to get as much momentum as we can is very helpful at this time of the year.”
jhawkins@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @jamesbhawkins