Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from slim win over Iowa

It wasn’t pretty, but it rarely is at this point in the season, but Michigan State basketball found a way to win at Iowa on Tuesday night.

It’s not a Michigan State game unless you feel anxiety watching the second half. Such was the case on Tuesday night as the Spartans were fighting to hold on to a road win over Iowa.

Although the Hawkeyes haven’t had the most impressive season, they are tough to beat at home. In fact, Michigan State hadn’t won in Iowa City since 2014-15 before beating the Hawkeyes on Tuesday, 96-93.

Yes, you read that correctly, the Spartans gave up 93 points to a 12-13 team. Granted, the Hawkeyes are one of the top offensive teams in the Big Ten, but the Spartans normally have an elite defense.

What’d we learn from the slim victory over Iowa?

5. College basketball has become increasingly difficult to watch

If you listen closely, you can still hear the faint screech of a whistle. Yes, that noise is now implanted in our brains after watching a 41-foul, 48-free throw performance on Tuesday night.

And no, it wasn’t just bad for Michigan State.

In fact, the Hawkeyes were whistled for 22 fouls to the Spartans’ 19 and Michigan State shot 10 more free throws than Iowa. That doesn’t mean that the Spartans got the benefit of the doubt more often than not because the officiating was calling everything on both ends.

You know it’s bad when one team is in the bonus just four minutes into a half. This isn’t what fans love about college basketball. Let these kids play and stop ruining the sport with an over-abundance of whistles.