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CHICAGO – Forget the rest, Michigan State basketball has another championship to play.

Cassius Winston and the sixth-ranked Spartans bombarded Wisconsin No. 19 early and were never beaten en route to a 67-55 victory in the semifinal round of the Big Ten tournament at the United Center.

The junior leader scored 21 points with six assists, including 9 of 17 on the floor. Kenny Goins added 13 points and 12 rebounds, hitting four of the nine three points from MSU. Xavier TIllman added 17 points and rookie Aaron Henry had 11 career rebounds.

The Spartans (27-6) qualify for the Big Ten Championship game on Sunday for the first time since winning in 2016. They will face the winner of Michigan-Minnesota at 3:30 pm. (CBS).

Ethan Happ basically replicated his first-game line with 20 points on 10 of the 20 shots to lead the Badgers (23-10), but MSU kept him at just six rebounds.

Michigan guard, Cassiuis Winston, scores against the Wisconsin defensemen in the semifinal semi-final of the Big Ten tournament on Saturday, March 16, 2019, at the United Center in Chicago. (Photo: Kirthmon F. Dozier, Detroit Free Press)

Warm start

After a slow, sloppy start against Ohio State on Friday, MSU went on to face Wisconsin with one of its best starts of the season.

Winston, the Big Ten player of the year, orchestrated everything, placing Goins and McQuaid 3 points in 1:05, then burying a deep rider at the top of the key for an 8-0 start.

After a bucket of Happ, Winston got his third assist in Goins's second hat-trick, then the 6-foot-1 (1m) points keeper went into the track for a pair of angular layups that forced Wisconsin coach Greg Gard to give the Spartans a timeout at a 15-4 lead at 5:31 of the first period.

They have not finished.

Goins exhausted his third pointer to 3, and Nick Ward took a hook that allowed MSU to go up, 20-6. The Spartans opened 9 of the 12 shots of the match, then 17 points on the three points of Xavier Tillman.

MSU scored 7 of 12 after half-time in the first half, but it cooled off finishing 4 of 17 in the last 10:51, while Wisconsin reduced it to 35-27 at halftime.

Winston had 11 points and four assists at the break.

Post rotation

Ward finished with two points and three rebounds in his second game against a broken hand. Izzo used it for 11 minutes on the bench, separating the 6-9 juniors with Tillman and Goins and mixing his combination on the block.

MSU dominated the Badgers on glass with a rebound advantage of 45-29, although Wisconsin outperformed MSU in the paint, 40-22.

Henry broke the glass with indiscriminate abandon and also got six points and two assists. Rookie Gabe Brown continued to witness a brief action as Kyle Ahrens' back worsened after a heavy fall in the first half. And Thomas Kithier got a top spot when Ward got his third foul early in the second half.

Manage Winston

After playing 22 minutes against Ohio State, Izzo continued to watch Winston's time on the court against the Badgers.

Freshman Foster Rent, the surprise offensive star on Friday, got 12 minutes off the bench and came in early to help Winston protect himself from his big toe, rolled ankle and bad knees.

Winston played 28 minutes and made only two turnovers. The Spartans had 15 gifts, most coming in some sloppy stretches in each half. They also dominated Wisconsin, 10-3, at the break.

Contact Chris Solari at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Learn more about the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.