Is championship history repeating itself for Michigan State men's basketball?

The Spartans are off to a 6-1 start in Big Ten play, and find themselves in first place in the Big Ten

Michigan State men's basketball came up with a massive win over Wisconsin this past weekend, bouncing back from a loss to Northwestern and taking sole possession of first place in the Big Ten in the process.

At 6-1 in conference play, the Spartans find themselves in a similar situation as the last time they earned a share of a regular season Big Ten championship.

During the 2019-20 season, Michigan State opened conference play with five consecutive wins before suffering their first Big Ten loss. The Spartans then responded with a 12-point victory over Wisconsin.

Ironically, that is the exact same script that the 2021-22 season has followed thus far, as pointed out by Spartan Sports Network broadcaster Dalton Shetler.

The last time MSU won the Big Ten (2020), the Spartans started 5-0 in Big Ten play. Suffered a loss, and responded with a 12 point win against Wisconsin (67-55).

This year, MSU started 5-0 in conference, lost one, and responded with a 12 point win vs. WIS (86-74).
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— Dalton Shetler (@DaltonShetler) January 24, 2022

Michigan State, ranked No. 10 in the country, will travel to No. 24 Illinois on Tuesday in a matchup between two of the top three teams in the Big Ten standings. The Spartans have not played in Champaign since that 2019-20 championship season and again, ironically, that proved to be a crucial game for MSU's championship hopes.

In 2019-20, Michigan State went into Champaign on a three-game losing streak but snapped that skid with a nail-biting 70-69 win over the Fighting Illini.

Fortunately for this year's Spartans, there is no three-game losing streak. But, if Michigan State can win another tough road game at Illinois, they will increase their Big Ten lead to a full game over second-place Wisconsin, and knock the Fighting Illini back to third place and two full games behind MSU.

The Spartans are in a real good spot as Big Ten play continues, and Tuesday's game has major conference championship implications. With a win, Michigan State reinforces its spot atop the Big Ten. With a loss, MSU drops back into a three-way tie with Wisconsin and Illinois for the conference lead.