Why Concerns for MSU's March Future Grew in Lackluster Win
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EAST LANSING, Mich. — The term “reality check” and a victory don’t often come together, but it feels like Michigan State got one on Sunday.
The 15th-ranked Spartans put enough pieces together to surpass Ohio State, 66-60, but it really didn’t feel like MSU (22-5 overall, 12-4 Big Ten) won this game in some ways. OSU (17-10, 9-7), a team hoping to just squeak into the NCAA Tournament, managed to keep it close in the Breslin Center without its second- and third-leading scorers.
“[Ohio State] did a better job than we did,” Tom Izzo said after the game. “We had three of the greatest practices that I’ve had since I’ve been here… We did not bring it today, and they did.”
This is after a win, just to make it clear. Those are the semi-rehearsed lines coaches are supposed to drop after a loss. No one was expecting Izzo to be pleased with that game, but this felt a little different from other “bad” wins from earlier in the season.
A Downtrodden Locker Room
The words Izzo spoke in the Spartans’ locker room after the game are going to stay within him and the team, but it’s probably safe to wager that the words were strong and that some of them had four letters.
When the locker room was opened up to media after the game, the air felt a little heavier than some actual losses in the past. The Duke game, for example, was a difficult loss, but it was early in the season and the sense of urgency to bounce back or immediately get better wasn’t as apparent. The feel went from “we’ll be fine” to “uh oh, something has to change here.”
“If we’re gonna play like that when one of their better guys is hurt, or if we play a game like this on the road, or don’t have the Izzone, or don’t have the home-crowd advantage, then we’re gonna have a reality check when we go play these next two games on the road [against Purdue and Indiana],” senior center Carson Cooper said.
It feels like that reality check already arrived, though. The goals at Michigan State are to compete for Big Ten championships and to go as far as possible in March. With hope for a conference title being zilch, the focus has to be on succeeding at the very end. Sunday afternoon showed everyone, MSU included, that it isn’t playing like a team primed for the deep run it is hoping to have.
Inconsistencies
It’s been some time since the Spartans put multiple quality performances together in a row. Michigan State looked great last Tuesday against UCLA, taking one step forward, but this game against Ohio State feels like 1.5 steps back, despite the “W” going by MSU’s name.
The ceiling for the Spartans can still be high. That overtime victory against Illinois still holds weight. The Fighting Illini have hit a rough skid themselves, but they entered that game in East Lansing winners of 12 straight — they still haven’t lost a game in regulation in 2026 and are still considered among the nation’s best on the predictive metrics (NET, KenPom).
Michigan State has proven that it can hang around, and perhaps beat, elite teams. It was tied with Duke with less than two minutes to go. MSU was up with a couple of minutes left at Nebraska. It was right there with Michigan until the final moments.
On any given night, the Spartans can beat anyone. The problem is having “any given night” happen a couple of times in a row. The NCAA Tournament selection committee revealed on Saturday that Michigan State would be a 4 seed in the tourney if the season had ended that moment.
Let’s say that’s the case. MSU would probably get a 5 seed in the second round — that’s a top-20 team. OK, you got past those guys. Have fun with 1 seed Arizona. OK, you got past those guys. Go beat 2 seed Purdue.
Michigan State hasn’t put together a convincing string of games to convince one it can realistically get through that type of gauntlet and hang a Final Four banner. Even during the team’s longer win streaks earlier this year, there were wins that probably don’t hold up against better opponents.The good news is that it has the chance to change everyone’s minds.
Two of the toughest games on Michigan State’s schedule are still left. The Spartans are going to Mackey Arena on Thursday night to take on Purdue. There would not be too many ways to prove your team is made of a special material by winning in the most hostile environment in the Big Ten. MSU has lost seven straight games in West Lafayette, with its last win being back in February 2014.
Then there is that test at Michigan. Crisler isn’t Mackey by any stretch of the imagination, but it’ll probably be the reverse of last year’s season finale. UM came to East Lansing with Michigan State already having the outright Big Ten title sealed; MSU blew the Wolverines out. Michigan will probably have its own outright title clinched and get a should-be coronation at its building against the Spartans this year. The key is if Michigan State will allow that to be the case.
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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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