EAST LANSING — Xavier Tillman and Marcus Bingham battled for the same rebound, the ball ticking off their fingers and trickling out of bounds.
They smiled their way through their momentary frustration, then gave each other a hug.
It was one rebound they didn’t get, one of the few times things didn’t go quite as planned Thursday night.
Otherwise, Michigan State basketball’s big men did exactly what they needed to all night, and in dominating fashion, after being challenged earlier this week by Tom Izzo. Coupled with the energizing return of Cassius Winston and a live-wire alumni Izzone inside Breslin Center, the 16th-ranked Spartans dominated Illinois for a 76-56 victory to remain the lone unbeaten team in the Big Ten.