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Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from Maryland blowout

By Connor Muldowney

EAST LANSING, MI - JANUARY 4: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during the game against the Maryland Terrapins at Breslin Center on January 4, 2018 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI - JANUARY 4: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during the game against the Maryland Terrapins at Breslin Center on January 4, 2018 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /
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Michigan State basketball re-opened Big Ten play on Thursday night with a blowout win against Maryland. What’d we learn?

Surprisingly, doubt has found its way into the Michigan State basketball program from outside spectators. One of those doubters has been CBS Sports‘ Gary Parrish who has been trying to make the case that the Spartans don’t deserve the No. 1 ranking, instead saying they should be third behind Duke and Arizona State.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo claims his team doesn’t worry about rankings nor does he want them to listen to what critics have to say, rather he wants them to just focus on the task at hand. The Spartans did just that on Thursday night, walloping Maryland, 91-61.

The win improves Michigan State to 15-1 on the season and 3-0 in Big Ten play and they are looking at a tough matchup with Ohio State in Columbus over the weekend. That will likely be the Spartans’ most difficult Big Ten task of the year, to date.

What did we learn from the Thursday night blowout victory over Maryland, though?

5. Kenny Goins deserves more minutes

Former walk-on Kenny Goins doesn’t get enough credit for being a solid contributor off the bench. Sure, he’s been up-and-down throughout his career, but he seems to have found the right niche in the rotation as a third or fourth guy off the bench who can come in, make smart plays and maybe even get a couple of layups.

However, his performance on Thursday against Maryland was much more than that. Although he played just 13 minutes, he scored eight points, grabbed five rebounds, blocked two shots and dished an assist. Oh yeah, and he made 2-of-3 shots from 3-point land. He’s added a long-range element to his game.

Usually when guys who don’t normally shoot from distance go up for threes, you can just tell they are uncomfortable in their motion — not Goins. He has a smooth release and could potentially be a 3-point threat for the Spartans off the bench. Give him more minutes to see if his shooting and defense can continue to have an impact.

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