Michigan State Basketball will be fine after big win over Maryland

The Michigan State basketball team will be fine after a big win against the Maryland Terrapins.

Oh, how quickly they forget.

After a three-game losing streak where the Michigan State Spartans were sloppy and uncoordinated, the national narrative was simple, “What was wrong with Michigan State?”

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Some of the criticism was deserved, too. Losses on the road against the mediocre Wisconsin Badgers and at home against the lowly Nebraska Cornhuskers look bad no matter what light you shine upon it. Getting blown out by the Iowa Hawkeyes on your home court with a healthy Denzel Valentine doesn’t look good, either.

Besides the game against Iowa, the losses to the Cornhuskers and Badgers were by a mere one point each. Valentine had chances to win each game at the buzzer, but alas, it wasn’t meant to be.

The reality of the situation, too, is that if it weren’t for a few calls or bad bounces, the Spartans may have won both games. If they pulled out both games, the narrative would be entirely different. It wouldn’t have been how MSU was struggling, but more how they were squeaking by mid-way through the conference schedule.

But those are just mere excuses. The Spartans played miserably in those matchups as the defense seemed non-existent. Senior guard Bryn Forbes was struggling mightily with his shot and the team looked out of sorts. There’s no denying that there were some problems with the team.

The Spartans looked out of sorts and, quite bluntly, like a bad basketball team. Losing a leader on-court and defensive stalwart in Tum Tum Nairn Jr. seemed like a bigger blow to the team than initially expected.

That’s why the win against a Melo Trimble No. 7-ranked Maryland Terrapins was such a huge win for this team. They played with emotion and a sort of desperation from a team who had been struggling.

Forbes shot out of his slump on his way to 25 points as Valentine recorded a double-double, just two assists shy from another triple-double. Senior Matt Costello, who was hobbled by an ankle injury, came up huge for the Spartans in the final minutes almost single-handedly willing the Spartans to victory.

It helps he had marquee moments like these to show the raw emotion of college sports.

The highlight of the game though had to be the Spartans’ style of play as they marched their way to victory. They finally looked like the same team that already has wins over Louisville, Providence and Kansas. All quality teams that have serious tournament aspirations.

Now, the Spartans have a win over another highly-ranked opponent, Maryland.

While there will always be skeptics of this basketball team, that’s to be expected. After a bad stretch like the Spartans had, it’s deserved as well.

But Saturday night at the Breslin Center showed how the Spartans can play, and they’ve displayed it earlier in the season too. They know how to beat quality teams and to close a game like they did against the Terrapins.

Before the game, Graham Couch said it perfectly, the Spartans had the opportunity to redirect this narrative of theirs. And after such a big win, the vibes around this team and what people are saying have certainly shifted.

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That’s what winning does for a team though. And for a team like the Spartans and Izzo’s success in the postseason, they once again have the chance to make a deep run in March.