Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from rivalry loss to Michigan

Michigan State lost a tough home game against in-state rival Michigan and here’s what we learned about the Spartans’ defeat.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock in an 82-72 upset win for Michigan on Michigan State’s home floor, panic started to set it. The fan base, which was already worried after an Ohio State loss and overtime Rutgers win, was ready to call the 2017-18 season a failure.

Heck, Miles Bridges had this game circled on his calendar ever since the Wolverines won 86-57 in Ann Arbor a year ago. He gave it his all in a 10-point loss, but he’s not going to be content until the Spartans meet the Wolverines again in the Big Ten Tournament.

Michigan State wants revenge for this one, but it will have to wait at least a couple of months — maybe even until next season.

What’d we learn from the Spartans’ upset loss to Michigan at home on Saturday?

5. Turnovers, perimeter defense were the difference

We can talk about how poorly Michigan State played until we’re blue in the face, but some credit has to go to the Wolverines for their perimeter defense as well as ability to score off turnovers.

Michigan had just seven turnovers as a team, but forced 18. The Spartans couldn’t figure out how to penetrate Michigan’s defense which led to many contested shots and only 13 attempts from 3-point range — most of those came late in the second half.

The Wolverines beat the Spartans at their own game and controlled the tempo. The Spartans played decent defense on the 3-point line, allowing just six 3-point makes, but they couldn’t stop Michigan’s drives.

Turnovers stuck out the most to me as difference-makers. Michigan State’s 18 turnovers were bad, but the Wolverines also capitalized on them, scoring 23 points off the Spartans’ miscues. The Spartans only scored four points off seven Michigan turnovers.

Now we know what the real difference in the game was.