Spartan Avenue
Fansided

Michigan State Basketball: Report card for comeback win vs. No. 19 Iowa

By Connor Muldowney

EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - JANUARY 08: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with his team during the second half at Breslin Center on January 08, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. Michigan State won the game 77-59. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - JANUARY 08: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans talks with his team during the second half at Breslin Center on January 08, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. Michigan State won the game 77-59. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
1 of 6
Next

Nothing like a come-from-behind win over a ranked team to get national attention and Michigan State basketball now has it after beating Iowa.

Iowa thought it had Michigan State right where it wanted it, but the Spartans fought back and turned an eight-point second-half deficit against a ranked conference opponent on the road into a 15-point win.

Impressive doesn’t even begin to describe the Spartans from about the 15-minute mark in the second half on as, in the words of Harry from Dumb and Dumber, they totally redeemed themselves. About 25 minutes of ugly basketball was shoved aside by 15 minutes of nearly-flawless play.

Michigan State improves to 18-2 overall and 9-0 in the Big Ten with the win and it has now won 21 consecutive conference regular season games — a school record. Iowa, on the other hand, has now lost two games this season against the Spartans by an average of 18.5 points.

Who earned the highest grade in the comeback win over Iowa?

B. . G/F. Freshman. AARON HENRY

There may not be a more aggressive freshman in the conference with the ball in his hands, but that’s just because Aaron Henry is gaining confidence and he doesn’t know anything other style of play. He’s not afraid to drive the lane and either kick out or look to finish at the rim and did a little of that on Thursday, scoring six points on 2-of-3 shooting.

Tom Izzo probably would like to see him shoot more open shots from long range, but he can’t be too mad about a 66 percent shooting night, albeit a small sample size.

Henry added four rebounds, two assists and two steals, but he gets a B for his three turnovers and two fouls. He’s going to be a heck of a player for Michigan State, but he must play more under control.

Not too bad for a fill-in starter in Josh Langford’s absence and with Kyle Ahrens on the mend — the latter may be out yet again with a re-injured back.

Home/Spartans Basketball