Michigan State basketball: 3 takeaways from blowout win over Alcorn State

Everything feels better after a Michigan State basketball win. How about two?

Before Friday night’s victory over Butler in East Lansing, it felt like the panic button was at the ready for the Spartans. But it was put away after Michigan State picked up a 20-point win and held a team that was averaging 88.7 points per game to just 54 points. The Spartans then beat Alcorn State on Sunday 81-49 without Tyson Walker.

Like I said, everything feels better and there’s a huge showdown with Arizona looming.

What did we learn from Michigan State’s 81-49 win over Alcorn State?

3. Michigan State has a legit defense

For the second straight game, the Spartans held an offensive-minded opponent to their worst game of the season. Sure, it’s still very early in the year, but that’s something to monitor. Heck, outside of the James Madison game, Michigan State has played really well defensively against every opponent — and yes, that includes Duke.

The Spartans held Alcorn State to just 49 points and just 16-of-61 shooting from the floor and 28 percent from deep. The Braves barely got an open look all night long.

On top of that, the Spartans had seven steals, nine blocks, and forced 12 turnovers. This is the type of defense you want to see, especially since they were missing their best on-ball defender.

Great all-around effort from the defense on Sunday night.