No. 23 Michigan St. women beat No. 18 Minnesota, snap skid

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Cooks' gets free in transition for easy lay-in

Michigan State shows off its speed as Sidney Cooks gets free in transition for an easy finish.

Jan 10, 2019, 02:39 am

EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Sidney Cooks scores a career-high 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting and Michigan State never trailed in its 86-68 win over 18th-ranked Minnesota on Wednesday night.

Nia Clouden scored 15 points, Jenna Allen had 13 points, seven rebounds and six assists and Shay Colley added 12 points for the No. 23 Spartans. Michigan State (12-3, 2-2 Big Ten), which snapped a two-game skid, came in averaging 20.9 assists per game (fifth nationally) and finished with a season-high-tying 28.

The Golden Gophers, who trailed by as many as 10 points in the first quarter, used a 9-0 run to pull within one early in the second but Michigan State scored 12 of the next 15 points and then closed the quarter on a 9-2 spurt -- capped by Colley's 3-point play -- to take a 43-29 halftime lead. The Spartans led by at least 11 from there.

Kenisha Bell led Minnesota (12-3, 0-3) with 20 points and Destiny Pitts scored 15. The Golden Gophers, who have lost three in a row, shot a season-low 9.1 percent (1 of 11) from 3-point range.

The Spartans committed a season-low eight turnovers and scored 23 points off 19 Minnesota giveaways.