The month of January is moving right along and Michigan State basketball has won its only two games of the month so far.
The Spartans opened January with a win over Ohio State on the road and then came back to East Lansing to dominate Washington by 34 points. This was actually Michigan State's second 30-plus-point win in four Big Ten opportunities.
Michigan State now faces five more tests to round out the month of January before an even tougher stretch of games in February. How will the Spartans fare in these final five games?
1. at Northwestern (Jan. 12)
The first game in this stretch will be at Northwestern which follows up a 34-point Michigan State win over Washington. The Spartans won't have the same luck against this purple and white team, however, as Northwestern always seems to put up a heck of a fight against them, especially in Evanston. This has upset written all over it.
This team is different, however. In the past few years, Michigan State may have lost a game like this on the road after a dominant home win but I don't see that happening this time.
There's no more Boo Buie to give the Spartans fits but Northwestern always has a guy. I think this is a very close game, but Michigan State finds a way on the road and improves to 5-0 in Big Ten play.
Prediction: Michigan State 71, Northwestern 67 (14-2, 5-0)