Michigan State Basketball: 3 takeaways from ugly loss at Purdue

2 of 3

WEST LAFAYETTE, IN – JANUARY 12: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans shoots the ball during the first half against Eric Hunter Jr. #2 of the Purdue Boilermakers at Mackey Arena on January 12, 2020 in West Lafayette, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /

2. When Cassius struggles, MSU struggles

If there was ever an example of Michigan State feeding off Cassius Winston, that was on Sunday when the Spartans seemed to struggle because their point guard was struggling.

When Cassius isn’t on his game, the team seems to go into full-blown panic mode, and that can’t be happening moving forward. Sure, it makes sense because he’s the point guard and he runs the team, but the Spartans need to make up for his struggles. He had arguably the worst game of his career, scoring just 10 points on 4-of-13 shooting with nine turnovers and five assists.

Michigan State needs to develop guys who weather the storm when Cassius is off and right now, Xavier Tillman can’t be the only guy.

Rocket Watts did step up off the bench, but other than that, it was radio silence from the rest of the bench and the starters. Aaron Henry was silent, Gabe Brown had a quiet game and Marcus Bingham Jr. played well on defense but struggled on the offensive end.

It’s time to get Cassius back on track and if that doesn’t happen soon, the Spartans could be eyeing a tough stretch.

Home/Spartans Basketball