Neutral-Site Games Could Prove to be Beneficial for Spartans Come March

No. 8 Michigan State men's basketball will be playing at its fourth neutral site of the season when it takes on Rutgers at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.
The Spartans had first faced then-No. 1 Kansas in the State Farm Champions Classic at State Farm Arena in Atlanta back in November. Shortly after, they went to Maui to play three games in the Maui Invitational at the Lahaina Civic Center. Not long after that, Michigan State went just 90 miles away from home to take on Oakland at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit.
The Spartans went 3-2 in those games, those two losses being their only ones so far this season, meaning Michigan State is undefeated both at home and at opponents' home arenas.
It's not often that teams go to this many neutral venues in one regular season. For the Spartans, it might prove to be advantageous when postseason play rolls around, with the Big Ten Tournament and NCAA Tournament, of course, both taking place at neutral sites.
"There's pros and cons to it," said Michigan State junior forward Jaxon Kohler. "Obviously, I mean, neutral site, it's not really anybody's home, right? But when it comes to whose arena are we playing at, you can say the fans have a big impact, which they do if you let them. But I think for our team, it's really important that we tune out all the other fans, all the other distractions and things that could get to our head and we just play our game, no matter what court it's on. It could be this court, it could be Madison Square Garden, it could be on a playground somewhere. We just have to play our game."
The Spartans will be facing a Rutgers team that is much tougher than its record implies. Its roster, headlined by freshmen Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper, is actually one of the more talented ones in the Big Ten, which makes it a dangerous and sneaky team.
The more Michigan State can take away from this upcoming meeting, whether good and/or bad, the more prepared it will be when it gets to the postseason.
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