Updated: No. 12 Michigan State basketball team blows out Michigan, earns share of Big Ten crown

Michigan State's Durrell Summers, top, and Michigan's DeShawn Sims go after an errant pass Sunday. Summers and Michigan State soared against Michigan for a 64-48 victory and a share of the Big Ten regular-season title.

“It’s kind of tough to win here,” Michigan senior forward DeShawn Sims said. “The past couple years Michigan has struggled to win here. I don’t know the last time we won here.

“Just not being able to get it done, I put a lot of it on me.”

He’s not alone. All of Michigan contributed to its latest loss in a disappointing season.

The Wolverines couldn’t shoot. They couldn’t defend. If it weren’t for 17 Michigan State turnovers, the Wolverines could have easily lost by 30 points. Even Michigan coach John Beilein, who was more animated than he has been all season, couldn’t pick up a technical foul despite being almost a third of the way toward the middle of the court after a call he disagreed with in the first half. From the game’s opening minutes, Beilein was on the officials.

His players, though, couldn’t guard anyone, allowing Morgan to score 22 points and grab 10 rebounds and letting nine Spartans to score.

“They are super physical, probably the most physical team we play and that’s, it’s a concern of mine two ways,” Beilein said. “Number one, we have to get more physical and number two, I must be teaching some different things in basketball defense because we don’t grab people a lot, not that they were grabbing, but there’s a lot of physical play that goes on.

“I wish it could be called tighter at times, but that’s the way it’s done.”

Beilein wouldn’t say his players were intimidated by Michigan State’s physicality and ability to bully, but it looked like it on the court.

The Wolverines were bounced around the court and then off of it rather quickly.

“They are very physical with you, but I’m sure it’s difficult for some of our guys either because of their body type or mental type to hang in there,” Beilein said. “But we fought right to the end, and we didn’t give up.

“They are just stronger than us.”

That was never more clear than toward the end of the first half, when Michigan State senior forward Raymar Morgan and Michigan sophomore guard Zack Novak tangled going for a loose ball at center court. Novak got caught in Morgan’s arm and ended up on the ground.

Physicality message sent. And with Michigan State already up 29-14 and dominating Michigan, game pretty much over before halftime.

All around, Michigan struggled. The Wolverines had the worst scoring half in a Big Ten game this season by any team - 14 points - in the first half. They couldn’t deal with Michigan State’s pressure, committing 19 turnovers - four more turnovers than the Wolverines had field goals.

After a game against Minnesota in which Michigan shot with its best efficiency, passed well and looked crisp, the Wolverines flailed about on the Breslin Center floor, flapping and flopping to shooting 34.9 percent from the field, 19 percent from the 3-point line and seemingly waiting for Michigan State (24-7 overall, 14-4 Big Ten) to end the game and wrap up a share of the Big Ten title.

“Part of the reason it went the way it went is that our defense was pretty good,” Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said.

It perhaps bothered no one more than Michigan’s two Detroit-bred stars. For the first time all season, neither Sims nor junior guard Manny Harris reached double figure scoring in a game. Harris had a season-low four points. Sims had nine points.

Just one Michigan player, forward Zack Gibson, reached double-figures with 10 points. Michigan was held below 50 points for the fourth time this season.

For Michigan (14-16, 7-11), it was just another loss on the road to Michigan State - a streak now spanning 11 games at the Breslin Center and four games overall. It was just another loss for Beilein, who has yet to beat the in-state rival Spartans.

For Sims, though, it was more. It means the former Michigan Mr. Basketball will have never won in East Lansing against guys he’s playing against and grown up with.

So in the locker room in the Breslin Center after his Michigan team was shellacked one final time by Michigan State, he admitted it’d bug him.

“Definitely,” Sims said. “Because I’ll probably see those guys the rest of my life and they’ll always have something over me.”

Michael Rothstein covers University of Michigan basketball for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at (734) 623-2558, by e-mail at michaelrothstein@annarbor.com or follow along on Twitter@mikerothstein.