Michigan State Basketball: 3 takeaways from loss to No. 6 Baylor

1. Too many important players disappeared

Listen, I don’t put a lot of stock into this final score, because Michigan State was arguably the better team for an entire half. Michigan State didn’t make the adjustments in the second half and Baylor flexed its muscle on the glass and just took advantage of that length advantage and ran away with a nice win.

Michigan State was on par with Baylor for about 25 minutes, but eventually, that’s going to have to change. It’s clear Michigan State can play with top teams (Baylor, Kansas) but the Spartans just cannot afford to have key players disappear when the games are in the danger zone.

Too many important players were non-factors in this one and that cannot happen against top teams and once Michigan State gets consistent performance from these guys when the lights are bright, the Spartans are going to be dangerous.

Gabe Brown had a solid game and led the team with 13 points, but Malik Hall had just three points, Marcus Bingham Jr. had seven points and a rebound, Max Christie had just five points on 2-of-6 shooting, Tyson Walker had five points, Julius Marble had five, and AJ Hoggard had one.

Why did Michigan State let a five-point lead turn into a 17-point loss? Key players doing their best Casper impressions.