What was billed as the Shawn Respert Show turned into the Quinton Brooks Clinic last night in East Lansing, Mich.

The junior forward stepped up and burned Penn State for 24 points and seven rebounds as No. 9 Michigan State downed the men's basketball team, 82-62.

With the win, the Spartans (15-2, 7-1 Big Ten) maintain a one-game lead in the conference while Penn State (12-5, 4-4) fell to .500.

"Each game we've had one of our forwards step up and play a big role for us, and tonight, it was Quinton's turn," Michigan State Coach Jud Heathcote told the Associated Press. "Hopefully, someday we'll get a lot of basketball from all of our forwards."

Although Brooks stole the spotlight from Respert in front of 15,138 at the Breslin Center, Respert still managed to toss in 23 points, including one three-pointer that almost brought the house down.

At the 12-minute, 46-second mark in the first half, Respert -- arguably the nation's best player -- brought the ball downcourt, pulled up and cooly hit a 35-foot jumper to put the Spartans up 19-7.

"They really, really picked us apart," Lion Coach Bruce Parkhill said in a post-game interview on WRSC-1390 AM. "I'm really disappointed in our defense."

And rightfully so. Michigan State only surrendered nine turnovers in the game, while the Lions allowed a season-high 82 points, letting the Spartans collect 37 rebounds and hit for 56 percent from the field.

A major factor behind Michigan State's shooting percentage was Brooks, who hit on 12-of-16.

"I'm taking better shots than I did last year and at the beginning of this year," Brooks told the Associated Press after the game.

In comparison, the Lions struggled somewhat from the field, hitting on 43 percent of their shots while pulling down 24 rebounds and committing 11 turnovers. Center John Amaechi led the Lions with 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Despite falling behind by as many as 14 in the first half, the Lions never rolled over. They knifed into a 21-7 Michigan State lead and actually cut the deficit to six on one occasion before settling at 40-31 by halftime.

But the Spartans, who are 12-0 when leading at the midway point, slowly diminished any of Penn State's hopes of making a run at their nine-point lead.

After junior forward Glenn Sekunda -- who was held scoreless in the first half for the second consecutive game -- hit a trey at the 18:35 mark of the second half, the Spartans ran off six consecutive points to up the lead to 50-36.

Penn State showed glimpses of a possible comeback when it rattled off seven straight points to close the difference to 50-44. But Michigan State, with its more athletic lineups, took control of the game shortly thereafter by outhustling the Lions to loose balls.

The Spartans rallied behind their athleticism, going on a 12-3 run to put the deficit at 62-47.

"(They were) every bit as quick as we expected," Parkhill said.

But one bright spot for the Lions was the rejuvinated shooting of freshman guard Pete Lisicky.

The Whitehall native regained his shooting touch when he entered the game and hit a three-pointer at the 4:49 mark of the first half. He went on to connect for 14 points, including 4-of-6 from behind the three-point arc.

"He hit some jump shots, but I'm really disappointed (in our performance)," Parkhill said.

For the second week in a row, Penn State will have to quickly regroup as the Lions host Iowa at 1 p.m. tomorrow in Rec Hall.