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Kur Teng hit three of Michigan State’s season-high 11 3-pointers en route to scoring a career-high 15 points and the 17th-ranked Spartans beat No. 12 Kentucky, 83-66, Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden in the first game of the annual Champions Classic.
Jaxon Kohler made two shots from beyond the arc to finish with a team-high 20 points, and Trey Fort scored 13. Michigan State (4-0) made half of its 3-point attempts after entering the game shooting 21.7% from long range, fourth-worst among 361 Division I programs, with just 14 total in its first three games.
Pounding the ball inside and taking advantage of second chances, a recipe much more familiar to coach Tom Izzo’s group, also worked. The Spartans outrebounded Kentucky 42-28 and never led by less than 10 after Teng’s baseline jumper deep in the corner with 2 seconds left in the first half.
Coen Carr threw down one of his trademark dunks on an alley-oop early in the second, and Michigan State fended off some Kentucky runs and extended its lead to 20-plus in the final minutes.
The Wildcats (3-2) started fast and led 5-0 early before going ice cold from the field. They were 8 of 29, including 4 of 15 from 3-point range, in the first half, en route to a second loss in three games.
Otega Oweh led Kentucky with 12 points, while Denzel Aberdeen, Collin Chandler and New York native Mouhamed Dioubate each scored 10.
Kentucky guard Jaland Lowe missed his fifth straight game to open the season. He is out indefinitely after dislocating his right shoulder in a team fight last month.
Next
Michigan State: Hosts Detroit Mercy on Friday night.
Kentucky: Hosts Loyola Maryland on Friday night.
