Nix, Michigan State turn away Texas, 67-56

Derrick Nix had 25 points and 11 rebounds to help No. 20 Michigan State surged past Texas 67-56 Saturday afternoon. Nix was 7-for-10 from the field and 11-for-13 at the line, a major improvement for a 64.9-percent foul shooter.

Keith Appling had 14 points and Adreian Payne added 13 for the Spartans (11-2), who stayed perfect in six December games.

Julien Lewis scored 16 points and Sheldon McClellan had 13 for the Longhorns (7-5)

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Adreian Payne drives for powerful flush:

Adreian Payne transition dunk:

Keith Appling steal leads to layup:

FINAL: Derrick Nix scored 25 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lift No. 19 Michigan State to a 67-56 win over Texas on Saturday at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing. Adreian Payne had a quality shooting game, nailing 5-of-7 shots from the field, and scored 13 points. Keith Appling added 14 points. The Spartans went 23-of-31 from the charity stripe as a team (74 percent) and grabbed 16 offensive rebounds.

HALFTIME: Derrick Nix is having a big game, but No. 19 Michigan State still trails Texas 33-28 at the break. In the first 20 minutes, Nix scored 14 points, grabbed nine rebounds, and shot 5-of-6 from the field. The long-distance game has been bottled up for the Spartans, who made 0-of-8 from beyond the arc in the first half, while shooting 55 percent (11-of-20) on two-point shots. Michigan State goes into the break with the offensive rebounding advantage of 8-4.