EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Iowa proved it could beat No. 4 Michigan State when the Spartans didn't have their best player. Denzel Valentine was back for the rematch but it didn't make a difference.
Junior shooting guard Peter Jok scored 19 of his 23 points in the first half as No. 16 Iowa established a 22-point halftime lead and pounded No. 4 Michigan State, 76-59 Thursday night at Breslin Center.
The Hawkeyes (13-3, 4-0 Big Ten) extended their winning streak to six games and recorded their first victory in East Lansing since 1993.
Iowa, which has won 10 consecutive Big Ten regular-season games, defeated then-top-ranked Michigan State 83-70 in Iowa City on Dec. 29. The Hawkeyes hadn't played since Jan. 5, but the layoff only seemed to make them stronger.
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"Everybody in that locker room believed that we could win this game and compete with those guys," said Hawkeyes senior guard Anthony Clemmons, who had 13 points. "We knew what they wanted to do. They wanted to come out and be the aggressor. I think we came out and threw the first punch."
Iowa took an early hit when its floor leader, senior Mike Gesell, retreated to the bench with two fouls just 2:16 into the game. Clemmons slid over to the point guard spot and the Hawkeyes offense flowed. They pumped in nine 3-pointers by halftime to take a 47-25 lead.
Michigan State never got closer than 13 points during the second half.
"I'm a point guard, too," said Clemmons, a high school teammate of Valentine. "That's the beauty of it. Mike doesn't have all the pressure and I don't have all the pressure. When he goes out, I'm able to pick up that slack. I think that's what I did, I was able to hold it down."
Senior power forward Jarrod Uthoff had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and sophomore forward Dom Uhl added 10 points for Iowa.
Hawkeyes coach Fran McCaffrey wasn't sure what to expect from his team after its lengthy layoff.
"I don't remember in all my years of coaching have nine days off in the middle of the season," he said. "It felt like we played Nebraska a month ago. I didn't know (how they would play). I've never been through this before. It's almost better to play a team of this caliber, with this reputation, on the road because you know you're going to get every ounce of effort that your guys have."
Valentine, playing in his second game since missing four after undergoing minor knee surgery, finished with 14 points, four rebounds and five assists. But all those numbers were below the senior guard's averages.
Senior center Matt Costello contributed 15 points and nine rebounds for Michigan State.
"The tougher team won and that's what usually happens," Spartans coach Tom Izzo said. "It's been a little bit of my frustration. They had a lot of threes, and a couple of them were guarded and a couple of them weren't guarded. That was the difference in the game."
Clemmons said the Hawkeyes keyed on the Spartans' perimeter shooters to limit Valentine's playmaking.
"With the hype of (people) saying 'They're a better team with him' it kind of gives you that edge," he said. "I know how much of an impact Denzel has on their team. We knew if we locked in on other guys who can score, we would have a good chance to win that game."
Izzo promised afterward to change his lineup and give freshman power forward Deyonta Davis (six points, six rebounds) more playing time.
"We're going to find guys who want to compete," he said. "We've got to do a better job coaching them, a better job of coaching them in practice. Nobody missed curfew, nobody did anything wrong. It was just a flat-out butt kicking."
The Hawkeyes' perimeter outburst allowed them to open up a 47-25 halftime lead.
Following a power dunk by Spartans junior point guard Eron Harris, Iowa outscored them 35-14 the remainder of the half. Jok capped it off with a fast-break dunk following a Michigan State turnover.
NOTES: The Spartans won 14 of the last 16 meetings. ... Michigan State senior SG Bryn Forbes entered the game ranked seventh nationally in 3-point percentage (.495). He was 0-for-4 from long range Thursday and 0-for-5 overall during a two-point performance. ... The Spartans led the nation in rebounding margin (plus-13.6) and field-goal-percentage defense (.359) through Wednesday. ... The Hawkeyes had their longest January layoff since 1993. ... Iowa senior PF Jarrod Uthoff has reached double figures in scoring every game this season.
