Two Biggest Spartan X-Factors Clear in Clash at Michigan

It's been some time since Michigan has swept Michigan State.

The Wolverines haven't beaten MSU at both the Breslin Center and the Crisler Center in the same season since the 2013-14 campaign. UM won the first leg of this year's home-and-home, taking down the Spartans, 83-71, in East Lansing on Jan. 30. Michigan State would certainly like to avoid going 0-2 against its arch-rival during what has been a pretty successful regular season, otherwise.

Michigan State's Coen Carr looks on during a game against Michigan at the Breslin Center on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI

"If you sweep you rival, you know, like in football, what do they talk about?" Tom Izzo said Friday. "We've gotta live 364 more days of this, so sweeping your rival is still a big, big, big deal."

Lots of different players are going to have to play well for MSU to take down this dominant Michigan squad. Guys like Jeremy Fears Jr. are a given --- if he doesn't play well, the Spartans have virtually zero shot. These two other guards, though, are the ones who should be looking to take advantage of this opportunity:

Jordan Scott

Jordan Scott was not a starter when Michigan and Michigan State first met, but he got moved to the starting five the very next game. He's had a difficult couple of games lately, but there's no better opponent to get back on track against than the Wolverines.

For MSU to pull an upset here, it needs to hit some threes. Wisconsin made 15 of them during its upset win in Ann Arbor on Jan. 10. The Spartans only made four of their 19 long balls during the first meeting against Michigan.

Mar 5, 2026; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans forward Jordan Scott (6) gets a second half dunk against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Dale Young-Imagn Images | Dale Young-Imagn Images

Scott is someone who can step up and knock down a huge three. He's made 45.8% of his shots from beyond the arc during Big Ten play, which is actually second in the conference among players with at least three attempts per game (UCLA's Skyy Clark, 48.9%).

He's actually made at least one three-pointer in 11 straight games. If Scott can provide a couple or a handful of threes and maintain his calmness, that is pretty remarkable for a freshman and would be huge for Michigan State's chances.

Kur Teng

Michigan State could also use another game where Kur Teng has his flamethrower activated. His six threes against Indiana and his three threes against Purdue were big reasons that the Spartans took big road victories in both of those games.

It's similar reasoning for Scott's inclusion: MSU needs to knock down some shots in this one. Given how Teng did in those back-to-back road games recently, perhaps he's someone who likes playing road games.

Michigan State's Kur Teng scores against Rutgers during the second half on Thursday, March 5, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The stats say so: Teng is 21-for-45 (46.7%) from behind the arc during Michigan State's nine true road games this season, compared to being 21-for-64 (32.8%) from deep in 17 games at the Breslin Center this season.

Michigan State's Kur Teng runs back on defense against Northwestern at the Breslin Center on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. | Starr Portice, Michigan State Spartans on SI