3. More post touches for Jaxon Kohler
As we found out against Illinois, Jaxon Kohler can make or break Michigan State's momentum. He wasn't on his game early, making some mistakes that helped put Michigan State in a hole but then he perked up and found some confidence on the offensive end and the Spartans went on a run.
Michigan State's post play has been better than expected this season after losing Mady Sissoko to the transfer portal and adding Szymon Zapala from Longwood.
Zapala, Carson Cooper, and Kohler average a combined 18.1 points and 16.7 rebounds per game which isn't too bad compared to what the Spartans got a year ago, but there needs to be more production from the centers, namely Jaxon, on the offensive end.
Kohler has been struggling to find his confidence offensively for weeks and he finally got some back against Illinois, scoring eight points on 4-of-9 shooting with two assists. He needs to be hunting for his shot more than he has been as he's only attempted 10-plus field goals three times this season and just once since Nov. 12 against Kansas. That's not good enough for a guy with his post moves.
Tom Izzo needs to run more offense through Kohler and he needs to finish better at the rim after shaking a defender with a devastating spin move.