Michigan State maintained its position atop the Big Ten standings with a 73-51 win over Minnesota at Breslin Center ahead of a California road trip with games against Southern Cal and UCLA upcoming. After Tuesday’s win,

Before embarking on a west coast road trip, the Michigan State Spartans have a quick stop at home on Tuesday night against the Minnesota Golden Gophers. Watch Michigan State on Peacock Michigan State continues to chug along through its Big Ten season.

Thankfully for Minnesota, that’s where the count stopped. The Spartans used four third-period goals to top the Gophers 9-3 in the series opener of the top two teams in the Big Ten. Michigan State (20-3-2, 11-2-2 in Big Ten) now leads Minnesota (19-6-2, 10-4-1) by four points on the table heading into the series finale Saturday.

The Gophers had 11 turnovers in the first half Tuesday, and the Spartans took advantage with a 11-0 lead in fast-break points. Minnesota had only one turnover in the second half, but the Spartans were still able to get out and run with 17-3 advantage in transition points.

The Gophers held the Wolverines to just seven points in the second quarter but were outscored in the other three in the loss. Still, they were well-positioned to take home their first win against a ranked opponent before the offense went cold in the waning minutes of the game.

All four Big Ten teams from the West face pivotal games this week at crucial points in their seasons. Oregon and UCLA, which meet tonight in L.A., both need a win to stay in the hunt for one of the double-byes awarded to the top four teams in the conference tournament.

Tom Izzo needs two wins to become the winningest coach in Big Ten conference games, and the Michigan State basketball coach can do it in Los Angeles.

The Gophers’ women’s basketball team has established a strong position to end its six-year NCAA tournament drought heading into the second half of the Big Ten Conference schedule. But up next is No. 4 Southern California on Thursday and No. 1 UCLA on Sunday. Both games are in Los Angeles.

In the latest AP Top 25 Poll, Tom Izzo has Michigan State ranked seventh in the country. That’s up from one spot the week prior. With that, in the latest predictions for the NCAA Tournament, the Spartans are listed as being one of seven Big Ten teams firmly in the field. That’s on the back of an 18-2 record overall and a 9-0 record in Big Ten play.

A decades-long battle over toxic pollution in Parkersburg, West Virginia, has reignited as a new federal lawsuit accuses chemical giant Chemours of illegally discharging high levels of PFAS (“forever chemicals”) into the Ohio River.

The Detroit Tigers are the only team in baseball with three top 10 prospects on ESPN's top-100 list, as compiled by draft expert Kiley McDaniel.

CLOQUET — Cloquet-Esko-Carlton senior Bobby Thornton scored in each period of the Lumberjacks' 6-3 win over Duluth Denfeld Tuesday at Northwoods Federal Credit Union Arena.