EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) -- Bryn Forbes scored all 18 of his points in the first half and No. 12 Michigan State tied a school record with 17 3-pointers in a 96-62 victory over Rutgers on Sunday night.
The Spartans (19-4, 6-4 Big Ten) have won three in a row since a three-game losing streak that dropped them well off the pace in the conference title race. They had little trouble with Rutgers (6-16, 0-9) thanks to their torrid outside shooting.
Michigan State led 44-33 at halftime after shooting 9 of 16 from 3-point range. The Spartans finished 17 of 32 from beyond the arc, one game after going 16 of 26 from long distance in a blowout win over Northwestern.
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Mike Williams scored 18 points for the Scarlet Knights.
Michigan State led 6-3 when Eron Harris missed a jumper with 17:24 left in the first half. The Spartans didn't attempt another field goal from inside the arc until Forbes missed a jumper with 8:02 remaining.
In between, Michigan State attempted 13 3-pointers and made eight, including six in a row at one point. Two free throws by Matt McQuaid were the only points for the Spartans in that stretch that didn't come from beyond the arc. The Spartans led 29-13 after a 3 by Denzel Valentine.
The second half was more of the same. Michigan State went on a 20-0 run - including a 3 by McQuaid and three of them by Valentine - to lead 78-43.
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Valentine scored 20 points and Harris had 14. Corey Sanders and Omari Grier scored 17 each for Rutgers.
Michigan State also made 17 3-pointers against Purdue on Feb. 20, 2014.