Another successful week of Michigan State basketball is in the books, and the Spartans are looking like one of the best teams in the country.
Although “experts” pegged Michigan State as the fifth or sixth-best team in the Big Ten to begin the season, and barely an AP Top 25 team, Tom Izzo has done what Tom Izzo does: win. The Spartans are 5-0 on the season with two top-15 wins and they picked up their second ranked victory on Tuesday in the Champions Classic over Kentucky. That win, coupled with a 28-point victory over Detroit Mercy, should move the No. 17 Spartans up in the polls.
There’s going to be plenty of speculation about where Michigan State could fall in the newest AP Top 25 for Week 4 when it’s released on Monday afternoon.
But where do I see them on Monday?
Without really looking at the results of the other teams ahead of them, I’d probably say the Spartans are worthy of a top-10 spot. That’s without even glancing at any results. Digging deeper, I’m going to have to predict that Michigan State will come in at No. 10 or No. 11 on Monday, jumping a few teams ahead of it that didn’t lose, but also didn’t play anyone of note (Iowa State, St. John’s, Gonzaga).
I also see the Spartans jumping Texas Tech, Kentucky, Illinois, and maybe Michigan.
If you’re counting, that’s at least a 6-7 spot jump. That would put the Spartans either at No. 10 or No. 11 on Monday afternoon, and I think that’s more than deserved.
Sure, you could argue that Michigan State doesn’t deserve that much of a leap because it has yet to cover the spread against inferior opponents, but it’s hard to look past a dominant 17-point win over No. 12 Kentucky and then an 84-56 victory over Detroit Mercy.
I don’t think Iowa State, St. John’s, or Gonzaga have shown enough to stay ahead of the Spartans, and Texas Tech, Kentucky, and Illinois lost in Week 3. As for Michigan, the Wolverines have been relatively underwhelming so far, but they have yet to lose. AP voters could troll Michigan and slot the Spartans one spot ahead of the Wolverines.
Realistically, though, I’m going to say Michigan State comes in at No. 11 on Monday.