Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from victory over No. 5 Notre Dame

5 of 5

EAST LANSING, MI – NOVEMBER 30: Jaren Jackson Jr. #2 of the Michigan State Spartans drives to the basket against Elijah Burns #12 of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Breslin Center on November 30, 2017 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /

1. Spartans have barely scratched the surface

Want to hear a scary thought? Michigan State has barely scratched the surface despite back-to-back 18-point wins over top-10 opponents. The Spartans beat a top-five opponent on Thursday for the first time since 2015 and took down the reigning national champ on a neutral floor for the fourth time under Tom Izzo on Sunday.

Must Read: Despite blowout of Notre Dame, Spartans have room to grow

Despite all of this success, the Spartans still have plenty of room to grow. In fact, Michigan State looks like a team that if it can put a full 40 minutes together, it will be nearly impossible to stop.

In fact, the first 20 minutes on Thursday featured a dominant Michigan State team playing arguably the best basketball it’s played all year. Strong defense, solid offense and elite rebounding all rolled into one. The second half was much more of a head-scratcher, at least early on. Notre Dame was able to score at will and the offense seemed timid for a stretch.

Next: MSU Basketball: Game-by-game predictions for 2017-18

The potential this team has is sky-high and there may be no stopping the Spartans once they get on a roll. If they can just put a full 40 minutes together, they can be the best team in the nation.

Home/Spartans Basketball