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Michigan State Basketball: Game preview, prediction at Michigan

By Connor Muldowney

Jan 29, 2017; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans student section performs during the first half of a game against the Michigan Wolverines at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 29, 2017; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans student section performs during the first half of a game against the Michigan Wolverines at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports /
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Michigan State basketball will take on Michigan on Tuesday night and here’s everything you need to know for the road matchup.

The first meeting between Michigan and Michigan State actually turned out to be a nice win in favor of the Spartans. The Wolverines stuck around all game thanks to Derrick Walton Jr., but the Spartans took care of business at the Breslin Center, 70-62.

Must Read: MSU Basketball: 5 bold predictions for February

Traveling to Ann Arbor Tuesday night, Michigan State basketball needs another victory. The Spartans are sitting at 14-9 and 6-4 in the Big Ten while Michigan is close behind. Michigan State needs to win about 10-11 games in conference play in order to solidify a spot in the NCAA Tournament and beating Michigan should be a priority.

Here’s how you can watch Tuesday night’s game:

Date: Tuesday, Feb. 7
Start Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Venue: Crisler Arena
TV: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN

Keys to Victory

It’s not going to be a walk in the park like some are expecting. Heck, Michigan is even favored in this one, but the Spartans need to get out to a quick start like they did in the first meeting. That seems to be my offensive key to victory each game, but getting guys like Eron Harris and Matt McQuaid involved in the offense will also be imperative.

Defensively, finding a way to slow Derrick Walton Jr. has to be the top priority. He killed the Spartans at the end of January and went to the free throw line about 15 times. Michigan State needs to hold him in check and that’s all on Cassius Winston and Tum Tum Nairn. Perimeter defense is also important with this 3-point heavy Wolverines team.

Betting Odds

Point Spread: Michigan -3

Related Story: MSU Basketball: Game-by-game predictions for February

Prediction

The first meeting between these two teams got a little chippy when Mo Wagner swatted at Cassius Winston when he was laying on the ground, but the Wolverines’ big man still had a big game. Nick Ward is going to have his way down low with Wagner this time. The Spartans are going to get the ball into the post to a healthy Ward and he’s going to go off for 18 points. Miles Bridges will add 15 and McQuaid will hit a couple of big threes again.

Final: Michigan State 73, Michigan 69

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