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Michigan State basketball: Beating Indiana is critical to kick off tough stretch

By Connor Muldowney

BLOOMINGTON, IN - MARCH 02: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans drives to the basket around Rob Phinisee #10 of the Indiana Hoosiers at Assembly Hall on March 2, 2019 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
BLOOMINGTON, IN - MARCH 02: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans drives to the basket around Rob Phinisee #10 of the Indiana Hoosiers at Assembly Hall on March 2, 2019 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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Michigan State basketball lost two times to Indiana in 2018-19 which nearly costed the Spartans a Big Ten regular season title.

A year ago, Michigan State was cruising through Big Ten play, and it hit an Indiana-sized speed bump in the form of the Hoosiers and Purdue Boilermakers. Luckily the Spartans rebounded and won both the Big Ten Tournament and regular season titles before making a Final Four.

This season, the same was happening with a 5-0 start to conference play for the Spartans and then they traveled to West Lafayette and got dismantled by Purdue.

Two games later, the Spartans will be headed to Bloomington to face the 14-4 Hoosiers in one of the biggest road games of the season. The Hoosiers may not quite have the talent to contend for the Big Ten title this year, but they can give some favorites problems, especially at Assembly Hall.

Cassius Winston and Co. are coming off a 12-point win over Wisconsin at home where the All-American point guard had a pedestrian game but the Spartans will need him to step up on Thursday night.

Here’s how you can watch Thursday night’s game against Indiana:

Date: Thursday, Jan. 23
Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
Location: Bloomington, Ind.
Venue: Assembly Hall
TV: FOX Sports 1
Live Stream: FOX Sports Go

Keys to Victory

It seems like this year, more than ever before, playing on the road in the Big Ten comes with a mental block more than anything else. The idea of playing away from home seems to mess with teams and Michigan State just needs to shut that idea out. Obviously there are more performance-based keys, but blocking out the noise and just playing the way they’re capable of will get the job done. No giving in to the crowd or playing scared.

The biggest key, other than the mental one, would be getting off to a quick start. The Spartans didn’t quite do that last season against the Hoosiers in two meetings and they let them hang around and eventually snatch the lead and the win late. Michigan State can’t let another Purdue situation happen where it comes out sluggish. It needs to come out swinging and when it takes a punch, hit back even harder.

It’s possible Indiana comes out hot because that’s what seems to happen when Michigan State plays on the road, but fighting back instead of crumbling when the Hoosiers go on a run will be important.

Players to Watch

Indiana doesn’t score at the most impressive rate, but 75 points per game is nothing to scoff at. The Hoosiers can put up points and they are 3-0 at home in conference play.

  • Trayce Jackson-Davis: 14.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.0 blocks 63% FG
  • Justin Smith: 12.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, 51% FG
  • Devonte Green: 11.1 points, 2.3 assists, 37% 3-point shooting
  • Al Durham: 10.5 points, 2.6 assists, 35% 3-point shooting

Next. Michigan State's all-2010s starting five. dark

Prediction

This one is truly difficult for me to predict, but I think Assembly Hall is one of the toughest places to play in the Big Ten. Michigan State won’t come out as flat as it did against Purdue, however, and that will lead to a close game throughout, just like it was a season ago in Bloomington. Cassius Winston will get back on track but Aaron Henry will have another rough game and the Spartans will struggle shooting the ball from distance, falling for the second time in conference play.

Final Score: Michigan State 71, Indiana 74

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