Would you believe it if I told you that Michigan State went into West Lafayette and beat No. 8 Purdue for the first time at Mackey Arena since 2014 and it still hasn't earned much respect nationally?
Well, you should.
That seems to be the unfortunate reality this season, and it might just have to be something that Tom Izzo leans into with his team to motivate them for the NCAA Tournament.
Experts and members of the media have been praising Michigan State's win over Purdue and many have said that it proves that the Spartans can win it all, but then you have a guy like Joe Lunardi who doesn't move them up to a 3-seed after the win and the Boilermakers remain a 2-seed.
Then, you look at the Vegas odds to win a national title, and realize that the Spartans didn't exactly get much respect for any of its big wins this season.
Michigan State beat Arkansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, Illinois, and Purdue, but Vegas is treating those wins like they're nothing, apparently.
Vegas is still not valuing Michigan State
I checked DraftKings national title odds this afternoon, and I couldn't believe my eyes. They have Michigan State (+4500) with the 12th highest odds to win it all which isn't even the bad part. The Spartans are behind three teams that they're beaten this season.
I got a chuckle out of Illinois (+1200) having the sixth-best odds still. That UCLA loss must be considered a really good one because they're right behind Houston and Florida in sixth.
Michigan State beat Illinois a few weeks ago in overtime, but Illini fans are chalking that one up to Kylan Boswell being out (neither team is fully healthy, by the way). The Spartans still won that game and really proved they belonged with the media's beloved Illini.
OK fine, Illinois is a good team and being behind them in odds to win it all is annoying but it makes a tiny fraction of sense.
What about Purdue (+3500) and Arkansas (+4000) also having better odds? I get that Purdue is coached by Matt Painter who's always going to have the Boilermakers contending, and they have the talent, but they should not be ahead of the Spartans who just beat them on their own floor.
And Arkansas? I get Darius Acuff being a National Player of the Year candidate, but they have one less ranked win than Michigan State this season and the Spartans beat 'em head-to-head. It makes no sense.