Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from blowout win over Penn State

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EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN – JANUARY 08: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with Cassius Winston #5 while playing the Purdue Boilermakers at Breslin Center on January 08, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. Michigan State won the game 77-59. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

2. If this is an offensive ‘lull’, the Spartans will be just fine

If this is a “lull” for the offense, Michigan State is going to be just fine. The Spartans scored 71 points and shot 49 percent from the floor and 40 percent from 3-point range, but had just 31 points in the second half.

Against Penn State, 71 points is usually enough to win, so the Spartans can’t feel too bad about that output, but a team that averages 86 points per game on the year has to be craving more after a performance like that.

Why are the Spartans going through a lull over the past two games offensively? Not having Josh Langford has something to do with it and a last-second change to Kyle Ahrens status before the team boarded the plane to head to Happy Valley is another. The Spartans scored 71 points and won by 15 without about 21 points per game at home and on the bench injured.

Turnovers were another issue as this team went through some droughts late in the second half because of those mistakes. If Michigan State can clean that up, it’ll get back to its 80-point scoring days — and soon.

Also, Cassius Winston didn’t have his best game, coughing the ball up seven times and scoring just 11 points.

Mix all that together and you have a ‘blah’ offensive output. Still, this team won by a wide margin on the road with that “struggling” offense.

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