Michigan State basketball bounced back in a massive way on Tuesday night, earning a 82-59 win over UCLA, getting back on the right track and into the win column once again.
In this dismantling of the Bruins, the Spartans showed a ton about the team they can be when all of the pieces fit together. The defense clicking, the offense hitting shots, it was a near perfect game from the Spartans team.
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Following the win, check out our three takes from the dominating performance:
3-point shooting
Michigan State’s Jordan Scott makes a 3-pointer against UCLA during the first half on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.
Michigan State hit 14 threes on Tuesday night, their most in a game since 2023. It might be the obvious, but if Michigan State is hitting three-point jumpers at the rate they showed in this game, there is a whole other level for the Spartans to unlock.
Michigan State’s defense is usually on point, but their shooting lacks behind. The Spartans have capable three-point shooters in Jordan Scott, Kur Teng and Jaxon Kohler, and when they get aided by Jeremy Fears and Coen Carr, they are going to be a hard-pressed team to beat.
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Continuing to build to get hot from three come March is imperative to the success of this team.
Jordan Scott as the backup PG
Michigan State’s Jordan Scott, right, looks to pass as UCLA’s Tyler Bilodeau closes in during the first half on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.
Respectfully to Denham Wojcik, that experiment needs to come to a close. On Tuesday night, we got a glimpse of what it would look like for Scott to run the backup point guard role, and to be quite honest, it was a thing of beauty.
Tom Izzo touched on this possibility post-game, but there is nothing to be mistaken, the second unit looked much better with Scott on the floor.
Fears is going to need to rest at times, and finding an alternative to Wojcik running the point is imperative. I thought Trey Fort would be the answer, but it looks like Scott is the one we should be keeping tabs on.
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The home stretch
Michigan State’s head coach Tom Izzo, left, talks with Jaxon Kohler UCLA’s during the first half on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026, at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.
The late January, early February drought that Izzo’s teams always seem to go through is over. This game symbolizes that the team is moving past that dreaded stretch, and the time to make a push is now.
Michigan State is over that gross hump that seems to plague this program year after year, and with five games left, it is the time to position themselves to make a move come March.
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This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Three takes from Michigan State’s dismantling of UCLA on Tuesday night
