Michigan State basketball: 5 bold predictions for January 2023

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 30: A.J. Hoggard #11 of the Michigan State Spartans and the Michigan State Spartans bench celebrate during the second half against the Buffalo Bulls at Breslin Center on December 30, 2022 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /

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Dec 10, 2022; East Lansing, Michigan, USA; Michigan State Spartans forward Joey Hauser (10) is greeted by teammates on the bench as he comes out of the game with 22 points and five rebounds to lead the team past the Brown Bears at Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Dale Young-USA TODAY Sports /

1. Michigan State wins two ranked road games

The road games that Michigan State has to play this month are brutal.

First, Michigan State heads to No. 14 Wisconsin on Jan. 10 and then three days later it will be in Champaign to play a really good Illinois team which may very well be ranked by then. The Spartans will be in Bloomington to face No. 15 Indiana on Jan. 22 and then in West Lafayette to face No. 1 Purdue at the dreaded Mackey Arena on Jan. 29.

That’s potentially four ranked road games in the month of January.

Michigan State is going to win two of them. My prediction is that the Spartans will win at Wisconsin and then turn around to beat Indiana in Bloomington on Jan. 22. Neither place is easy to win at but the Spartans are due for a couple of really solid road wins every year, at least.

I don’t see Michigan State winning in Mackey Arena because it seemingly happens once every decade and Illinois is also just a nightmare arena for Michigan State.

A 2-2 month on the road with that many ranked teams on the schedule is a successful stretch.

Next. 3 takeaways from MSU's win over Buffalo. dark

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