EAST LANSING, Mich. — Payton Sandfort scored 22 points, Ben Krikke added 18 points to go with a season-high 14 rebounds, and Iowa beat Michigan State 78-71 on Tuesday night.
Iowa took the lead for good late in the first half and had a 16-point advantage early in the second. A-6-0 surge cut the Michigan State deficit to 70-65 with 2:31 remaining. Sandfort scored three points and Owen Freeman added a dunk to help the Hawkeyes pull away.
Sandfort and Krikke were a combined 14-for-26 shooting overall and 10 of 12 from the free-throw line. Patrick McCaffery added 14 points for the Hawkeyes.
Iowa (16-11, 8-8 Big Ten), which beat No. 20 Wisconsin 88-86 in overtime on Saturday, has won consecutive games for the first time since winning three straight in January. The Hawkeyes have also won five of the last six meetings against the Spartans.
Tyson Walker and Malik Hall each scored 16 points to lead Michigan State (17-10, 9-7), which had its three-game winning streak snapped. Hall had 10 rebounds and five assists. A.J. Hoggard chipped in with 15 points.
McCaffery scored 12 points, Krikke added 11 and Sandfort had 10 as Iowa shot 57% (16 of 28) from the field for a 45-33 halftime lead. Walker scored nine first-half points for Michigan State. The Hawkeyes opened the second on a 6-2 spurt for a 51-35 advantage for their largest lead of the game.
Iowa plays at No. 12 Illinois on Saturday. Michigan State hosts Ohio State on Sunday.