Michigan State basketball: 3 takeaways from loss to No. 10 Illinois

1. Michigan State needs to take advantage of upcoming slate

Tom Izzo said it best after the loss on Thursday night: Michigan State beats a lot of teams if it plays the way it did against the Illini on the road.

And he's right. Michigan State probably beats James Madison, Northwestern, Nebraska and probably Arizona if it plays like it did last night in all of those games. This could be a completely different season if the Spartans had figured out it could beat anyone earlier in the year. But unfortunately, that's not the case.

Fortunately, the Spartans have a favorable slate coming up. In fact, the Spartans have a very winnable stretch coming up.

Michigan State will face Rutgers, Minnesota, Michigan, and Maryland at home in four of the next six games and it will take on Maryland and Wisconsin on the road in that span as well. Following that stretch, the Spartans face Minnesota on the road, Illinois at home, and then Penn State and Michigan on the road before getting winnable games against Iowa and Ohio State at home right after.

The upcoming stretch is a chance to really gain some momentum and get back on track before March rolls around. There is a path to another comfortable NCAA Tournament berth, but the Spartans must take advantage of this stretch.