Michigan State basketball: 5 bold predictions for 2022-23 season

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Michigan State’s head coach Tom Izzo looks on during the first day of practice on Monday, Sept. 26, 2022, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.220926 Msu Bball Practice 021a /

2. MSU will finish in the top three in the Big Ten

The Big Ten is down this year. There’s really no dancing around that.

The conference has favorites like Illinois and Indiana and then some upper-tier teams that can make a push like Michigan State, Michigan, Purdue, Wisconsin, and Ohio State. Rutgers, Iowa, and Maryland could even be thrown into that mix as well. But there’s no clear runaway favorite unless you listen to Illinois or Indiana fans.

I think the Spartans are going to surprise some people and push for one of those top three spots in a down year. Will they win the conference? I don’t think so, but it’s not crazy to think they’ll have a shot to push for a double bye in the Big Ten Tournament, especially since the Spartans only face Illinois once.

Michigan State will finish with a winning record in league play at 13-7. I think that’s going to be enough to get them in that top three and potentially a top-seven seed in the NCAA Tournament.

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