Tom Izzo's main focus right now is on Purdue and trying to overcome that massive Mackey hurdle that seems to trip Michigan State up every season.
But there's another looming matchup that just got a whole lot tougher on the Spartans.
The Spartans haven't won a game at Mackey since Gary Harris and Adreian Payne led them to a 94-79 win over the Boilermakers back in 2014. Yes, it's been 12 years since Michigan State last beat the Boilermakers. The last time Michigan State beat Purdue, it was ranked No. 13 in the country and also had a 22-5 record. Maybe history repeats itself on Thursday night.
However, there's a game slightly further down the line that may have gotten tougher for Michigan State on Tuesday night thanks to a scrappy Northwestern team that just never goes away.
Indiana will be fighting for its NCAA Tournament life vs. MSU
After blowing a double-digit lead against Northwestern at home on Tuesday night, Indiana lost potentially its most winnable remaining game. The Hoosiers do still have Minnesota at home which is probably more winnable, but that's not going to help their resume.
All Indiana has left that could help it get off the bubble and into the NCAA Tournament is Michigan State. The Hoosiers also go to Ohio State, but the Buckeyes may miss the tourney, too.
Indiana hosts Michigan State on Sunday, looking to bounce back from that Northwestern loss and end its three-game losing streak, and there's an NCAA Tournament berth on the line.
Teams are always going to give Michigan State their best shot, but when there's a ticket to the Big Dance on the line, especially for a proud hoops school like Indiana, the intensity gets turned up an extra notch or two. The crowd is going to absolutely bring it on Sunday and Michigan State has to be ready to get punched in the mouth and prepare a response.
Indiana will likely need to win out after Tuesday's loss to Northwestern to have a real shot at making the tournament after falling to the wrong side of the bubble.
My guess is that this is going to be a physical game.