Michigan State basketball: Let's burn the Iowa tape and move on

Down 12 at halftime, it was gut-check time for Michigan State basketball. Iowa came in and landed punch after punch, leading to the Spartans scrambling for answers at the half.

When Michigan State came out of the locker room, it put together a couple of solid runs and cut the lead to five on multiple occasions, but the Spartans just could not get over that hump. They struggled and it was due to their own mistakes. They turned the ball over in key situations, took poor shots, ran the shot clock down too far with no plan, and struggled defensively.

The effort in the second half was much better which was why they were able to even flirt with a comeback win, but the lackluster showing in the first 20 minutes was the difference.

Oh, and don't even get me started on free throws and layups.

It was one of those games that doesn't exactly need a deep dive into the film. Everyone who watched the game knew exactly what the issues were. Everyone knew why this game didn't go Michigan State's way.

Effort, rebounding, free throws, floor spacing, missed bunnies. Iowa just wanted it more and it's even more frustrating to hear after the fact from Davis Smith that he could sense the vibes were off in warmups. That's unacceptable. They overlooked the Hawkeyes and that's why they lost.

No need to see what the problems with the Xs and Os were, this one was on the leaders failing to lead and allowing the team to just sleepwalk in a crucial game, expecting a win.

It's cliche to say, but it truly is important that this team burns the Iowa tape and moves on. They simply cannot let this type of mindset happen again going into a game. Hopefully the Spartans learned their lesson because it may very well cost them a whole seed line or two in the NCAA Tournament.