Michigan State is gearing up for one of its biggest games of the season which feels like something we can say ahead of every contest now. The Spartans will head to Madison to face the red-hot Wisconsin Badgers.
The Badgers have won eight of 10 games, including two top-10 road victories, and they also possess one of the best backcourts in America.
Michigan State is fresh off one of its biggest wins of the season, stopping a two-game skid.
Let’s get bold ahead of Friday’s showdown.
1. Jordan Scott stays hot
Jordan Scott has been hot for the past three games, and he’s really taken his game to another level since he’s entered the starting lineup. He’s averaging 11.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.7 steals per game, getting the job done on both ends of the floor.
Scott’s going to stay hot on Friday night as he won’t be rattled by the hostile Kohl Center environment. He’s going to score 15 points again with seven rebounds and a couple of steals. A couple of his 3-pointers will come at clutch times for the Spartans.
2. Jeremy Fears has another 25/10 game
There’s not a hotter player in college basketball right now than Jeremy Fears, and the Spartans are going to lean heavily on him once again versus Wisconsin.
Michigan State needs him to be on his game if the Spartans are going to shut down John Blackwell and Nick Boyd. He’s going to do that with a second straight 25 and 10 game. Fears is coming off a 27-point, 15-assist performance against Illinois, and he’s going to score 26 with 11 assists on Friday.
Will it be enough, though?
3. Michigan State gets off to a hot start that leads to a win
Michigan State has been getting off to slow starts for a couple of weeks now, starting with the Rutgers game. That’s led to a couple of furious comebacks and it’s not exactly a trend that Tom Izzo wants to get used to.
Like we saw during the 2019-20 season with the road win against Illinois, Michigan State is going to officially put its skid to bed (more than it did against the Illini) with a strong performance from start to finish. Michigan State will get out to a 10-point lead in the first half and hold onto that for most of the game. The Spartans will have a scare late, but a big Scott three will put them up four.
Michigan State picks up a gutsy win in Madison, 76-72.