EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Cohen Carr scored 11 points in the first seven minutes and finished with 13 and Jeremy Fiers had 18 points and 11 assists to lead No. 17 Michigan State to an 84-56 victory over Detroit Mercy on Friday night.
The Spartans (5-0) followed up their 83-66 win over No. 12 Kentucky in New York with a home rout against a superior team led by former Michigan State point guard and assistant coach Mark Montgomery.
Michigan State, which beat then-No. 14 Arkansas two weeks ago, will likely play its third game against a team ranked in the AP Top 25 when it faces No. 18 North Carolina on Thanksgiving Day in Florida.
Carson Cooper scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half and Jackson Kohler scored nine of his 13 points after the break to help the Spartans to a lopsided win after a strong start.
The Titans (1-5) started 0-for-10 from the field and missed 16 of their first 18 shots before improving their shooting.
It was too late.
The Spartans led 17-4 midway through the first half and 41-25 at the break.
Michigan State maintained a comfortable cushion of fresh players on the court as coach Tom Izzo used an 11-man rotation before moving deeper into the bench late in the game.
One of the loudest cheers of the night came when Nick Sanders, son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Barry Sanders, hit a 3-pointer with 1:10 left.
Detroit Mercy's Orlando Lovejoy scored 14 points. Aiden Carter and TJ Nadeau each scored 10 points.
Next
Detroit Mercy plays at DePaul on Sunday night.
Michigan State plays East Carolina on Tuesday.
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