EAST LANSING – All winter, Tom Izzo has preached that the Big Ten title could come down to who you play and where you play them.
He added a third qualifier Monday.
“It’s sometimes when you play and when they don’t play,” Izzo said.
Three days after giving Izzo his Big Ten-record 354th conference win, No. 13 Michigan State basketball hosts No. 14 Purdue on Tuesday night at Breslin Center (7 p.m./Peacock). Then three days later, the Spartans head to Ann Arbor to face No. 12 Michigan (8 p.m./Fox).
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Both second-place MSU (20-5, 11-3) and the third-place Boilermakers (19-7, 11-4) played Saturday. The league-leading Wolverines (20-5, 12-2) won at Ohio State on Sunday but are off until the Spartans visit Crisler Center on Friday.
Both games are critical for Izzo’s pursuit of an 11th regular-season Big Ten title, which would tie Bob Knight and Ward “Piggy” Lambert for the most in conference history.
MSU gave Izzo another milestone with a dramatic comeback 79-65 win at Illinois, overcoming a 16-point first-half deficit and smothering the Illini and outscoring them 15-0 over the final 8½ minutes. It allowed the 30th-year Hall of Fame coach to break his week-old tie with Knight for the Big Ten victories record, and he promised he and his players would celebrate both the pivotal road win and his personal accomplishment.
But even Saturday in the locker room at State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois, the Spartans knew their enjoyment would be fleeting.
“When we go to sleep tonight, that’s probably all the time we got,” sophomore Coen Carr said. “And we gotta move on to the next one.”
That comes against a Purdue team that has lost its last two games, falling 75-73 at U-M last Tuesday, then dropping their second game at Mackey Arena this season Saturday to No. 11 Wisconsin, 94-84.
However, Izzo said he believes the back-to-back losses “is gonna affect them in a positive way” as the Boilermakers come to Breslin for the first time since 2023.
“I think what now it really is more concerning for all of us is when we play them, as far as days rest and not,” Izzo said. “They haven’t had much either. But knowing Purdue, if you get them after two losses, it’s better for Purdue than it is for Michigan State.
“Usually when you lose a couple games or a game at some of these programs, including ours, I think players know that it’s gonna get turned up in practice, it’s gonna get turned up in the game. So we’ll get Purdue’s best shot.”
MSU has lost five straight to Purdue and nine of the last 10 since a 2019 split. The Spartans’ only win in that stretch was at home in 2022, and they lost twice last season – a seventh straight regular-season loss at Mackey, 80-74, before getting eliminated by the Boilermakers from the Big Ten tournament in Minneapolis, 67-62.
This will be the first time since 2020 that MSU doesn’t have to contend with former Purdue star Zach Edey, who helped lead the Boilermakers to consecutive Big Ten regular-season titles. The two-time national player of the year last year delivered the program’s first Final Four appearance since 1980 and an NCAA runner-up finish.
This Purdue team is markedly different and far more guard-oriented but led by junior Trey Kaufman-Renn. The 6-foot-9 forward ranks third in the Big Ten at 19.4 points and 14th in rebounding at 6.3 per game.
The veteran backcourt tandem of Braden Smith (16.0 points/8.8 assists/4.7 rebounds) and Fletcher Loyer (13.9 points/45.3% 3-point shooting) return, and they have been joined this year by C.J. Cox. The 6-3 freshman is averaging 7.8 points and 4.0 rebounds since becoming a starter in early January, and the Boilers are 10-3 with him in the initial lineup.
“They have been as consistent as anybody the last four years,” Izzo said. “And they have remained that way this year. … You win with guards, and Loyer and, of course, Smith, have been two anchors for them the entire time. Renn is playing at an elite level.”
Win or lose, the Spartans’ once again won’t have any time soak it in or sulk. Another short prep for U-M awaits starting almost immediately after the final horn sounds Tuesday night. It is a grind Izzo likened to things he learned about the NBA during his dalliances with jobs in the pro league.
He’s seeing the Big Ten’s proliferation of TV and streaming deals having a similar impact on the college game, with it become more important with “how much prep time you have and how much rest time you have” during the 20-game league schedule.
“When you have a five-day prep compared to a two- or three-day prep, those are challenges,” Izzo said. “I’m sure everybody’s gone through them, and we gotta go through it at the end of the year. …
“We gotta find a way to win games this week, no matter what the circumstances are, because some teams have done it. That’s just the way it is. It’s a little more difficult when it’s at the end of the year, because you’re tired.”
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State basketball faces critical week with Purdue, U-M looming
