College hoops roundup: Michigan off to best start in school history

Jan. 14 (UPI) -- The No. 2 Michigan Wolverines raced to the best start in school history with a win over Northwestern, and No. 6 Michigan State cruised by Penn State on Sunday.

The Wolverines (17-0, 6-0 Big Ten) led from beginning to end in the 80-60 victory over the Wildcats.

Michigan's 17th consecutive win marked the best start in school history. It was the Wolverines' sixth consecutive double-digit win, and Michigan has won all but one of its conference games by double digits.

Michigan has won 31 of its last 32 games, with the only loss coming against Villanova in last season's national title game.

Wolverines junior point guard Zavier Simpson scored a career-high 24 points and center Jon Teske notched 17 points and 11 rebounds. The duo combined for eight of the team's 11 made 3-pointers.

"I don't wanna compare it to any other teams because we've had some great teams and I hate comparing great to great," Michigan head coach John Beilein told reporters after the game. "But I do say that this team has the capacity. If we get that out of [Simpson and Teske], I wouldn't like to guard that."

Senior guard Charles Matthews scored 13 points (6-of-10 shooting) and freshman forward Ignas Brazdeikis added 11 points and four rebounds.

Northwestern (10-7, 1-5 Big Ten) leading scorer Vic Law missed the game with a lower-body injury. Senior center Dererk Pardon led the team with 20 points.

Senior guard Ryan Taylor chipped in 15 points and sophomore Anthony Gaines had eight points and a team-high 10 rebounds.

Michigan and Virginia are the only remaining undefeated teams in Division I college basketball. The Wolverines travel to play Wisconsin on Saturday.

In another Big Ten game, No. 6 Michigan State (15-2, 6-0 Big Ten) grabbed a 71-56 win over the Penn State Nittany Lions on Sunday.

Spartans forward Nick Ward had a team-best 16 points and 11 rebounds. Senior guard Matt McQuaid scored 15 points on 4-of-6 shooting from three. Junior Cassius Winston had 11 points and a team-high six assists.

Penn State (7-10, 0-6 Big Ten) lost to the Spartans for the 10th straight time. The Nittany Lions' 0-6 record in conference play marks the school's worst start since the 2014-15 season when the team finished 4-14.

Penn State forward Lamar Stevens had a team-high 20 points with six rebounds. Mike Watkins, Myles Dread and Josh Reaves each scored 11 points.