MSU's Kohler Thinks Team is More Dangerous After Duke Loss
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EAST LANSING, Mich. --- Senior forward Jaxon Kohler likened Michigan State to a "wounded animal" on Thursday because of its loss against then-No. 4 Duke last Saturday.
"I've said that a wounded animal is a dangerous animal," Kohler said on Thursday. "I feel like, as a team, we've taken [our fire] to another level. I feel like we're twice as dangerous as we were because we're fighting to right our wrongs."
Putting oneself on the level of an animal scratching and clawing just to stay alive seems like a... strong way to describe a team that is 8-1, ranked ninth in the country, and already has four Quad 1 victories. "Wounded animal" sounds a bit like desperation. Adding fuel to the fire after a tough loss is normal, but MSU is hardly fighting for its season on Saturday against Penn State.
That's not the mentality Kohler has.
More on the "Wounded Animal" Mentality
"I'm glad I get to say this," Kohler told Spartan Nation when asked about his wounded animal simile. "All that stuff [rankings, records], all the number this, all the number that, it don't mean nothing. It's great to have that, but we know what we could have done [against Duke]. "Top 10 in the country, rankings, whatever, that can change in a week, depending on our play. Our record, it should still be undefeated, because we know we lost that game more than they [Duke] won it.
"A wounded animal, it means, 'Hey, we did not accomplish something where we should have.' We didn't play the best, and we suffered the consequences. We suffered a loss --- a loss that we should have won."
No player or coach was probably thinking the Spartans were going to be the first undefeated college basketball team since 1975-76 Indiana, but something Kohler acknowledged is that having a zero in the loss column can come with some negatives.
"In nature and movies sometimes, when somebody's hurt, they have a sense of urgency," Kohler said. "Something that Coach [Tom Izzo] says a lot about to us [is]... 'Hey, now we have a loss.' We know that we're not undefeated anymore. We can lose. When you go undefeated, it feels sort of surreal until you lose, but now we're fighting for more than ever. We want to get back to that mountaintop."
Even though Penn State is not an opponent with the glitz and glamor of Duke, Saturday is still going to be a big game for Michigan State. It's a conference game, after all, and a chance to start 2-0 against the Big Ten for the second consecutive season. The Nittany Lions might be in "wounded animal" mode, as they are coming off a 41-point loss at Indiana.
"You can tell that everybody is excited for this next game," Kohler said. "Everybody just can't wait to get back in there on the floor against another team and kind of right our wrongs. That Duke loss gave us a fire."
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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