EAST LANSING – Michigan State opened its Big Ten title defense successfully.

The No. 7 Spartans (8-0, 1-0) clamped down defensively and dominated the glass in a 71-52 win against Iowa (7-1, 0-1) on Tuesday night at the Breslin Center.

Michigan State, which won the conference by three games last season, slogged through a foul-plagued first half with a double-digit lead and pulled away after the break to extend its longest unbeaten start to a season in a decade.

Coen Carr had a game-high 15 points to lead the Spartans, Jeremy Fears posted 14 points and six assists while Jaxon Kohler recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 rebounds. True freshman forward Cam Ward, who is fifth on the team in scoring sat out while nursing a wrist injury suffered in a win agains

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