Michigan gets 3 straight in nail-biter

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) - Stu Douglass made a layup with 36.5 seconds remaining, and No. 20 M ichigan held on through a wild final sequence to beat No. 9 Michigan State 60-59 on Tuesday night.

On Michigan State's last possession, Keith Appling drove to the basket but had his shot blocked by Jordan Morgan. Brandon Wood of the Spartans came up with the ball, and Draymond Green was able to get another shot off from near the free throw line, but it missed.

Freshman Trey Burke scored 20 points for Michigan. He rebounded a miss by Appling in the final minute and turned it into a transition chance, eventually passing to Douglass for the winning layup.

Michigan (15-4, 5-2 Big Ten) has won three straight over Michigan State (15-4, 4-2).

Derrick Nix led Michigan State with 13 points.

After the final shot, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo tracked down the officials to discuss something, but after a brief conversation the officials headed off the court.

It was the first meeting between the in-state rivals with both teams ranked since 1998.

Michigan led by four points early in the second half when Burke, a freshman, scored seven straight points. His 3-pointer gave the Wolverines their largest lead, 47-36.

Austin Thornton answered with a 3-pointer, the start of a 16-2 run by Michigan State. A 3-pointer by Wood -- his first field goal after five misses -- made it 47-44 and forced Michigan to take a timeout with 9:34 remaining. The Spartans finally took their first lead at 50-49 on a 3-pointer by Brandan Kearney from the left corner.

Michigan State led 57-53 when Burke made a free throw and Tim Hardaway Jr. added a shot from the perimeter. Thornton's two free throws pushed the Spartans' lead to three, but Hardaway made it 59-58 with a baseline drive.

Michigan coach John Beilein tweaked his starting lineup, inserting Douglass for the struggling Evan Smotrycz. The Wolverines were in a bit of a shooting slump in conference play, but Zack Novak made two 3-pointers, helping the Wolverines take a 13-4 lead.

Michigan State was playing catch-up throughout the first half, struggling to defend the Wolverines as they patiently spread the court on offense.

Michigan went on a mini-run to push the lead to 10. Hardaway made two free throws, then blocked a shot by Green. Morgan scored inside for the Wolverines, then Burke scored off a turnover to make it 30-20.

The Spartans responded with nine straight points, pulling within one on a 3-pointer by Kearney, but Douglass answered with a rare four-point play, making a 3-pointer from the right wing while being fouled.

Michigan led 36-29 at halftime. Hardaway began the second half with a dunk for his first field goal.