Michigan State Basketball: Early look at Spartans’ 2019-2020 season schedule
By Ryan Kay
Michigan State Basketball is preparing for a difficult upcoming schedule. Who are they already slated to face for 2019-20?
As the favorites to be the pre-season #1 team in the nation entering the 2019-2020 season, Michigan State Basketball is already compiling an impressive non-conference schedule. After deciding to cancel their late summer trip to Spain, the Spartans will prepare for their upcoming season in hopes of winning a national championship in 2020.
Once the Big Ten went to a 20 game Big Ten schedule, the Spartans will have 11 non-conference games for the 2019-2020 season. Michigan State already has six non-conference games schedule due to their involvement in the Champions Classic, Maui Invitational, Gavitt Tipoff Games, and the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. Of those six games only one of them is a home game. Look for the Spartans to schedule their remaining 6 non-conference games at the Breslin Center.
Let’s take a look at the already loaded non-conference schedule.
Michigan State Spartans 2019-2020 Schedule
Non-Conference Schedule (As of now)
November 5th: Champions Classic Kentucky (New York, New York)
November 14th: Gavitt Tipoff Games at Seton Hall
November 25th: Maui Invitational
Opponent to be Determined (Lahaina, Hawai’i)
Possible opponents: BYU, Dayton, Georgia, Kansas, UCLA ,Virginia Tech, and Chaminade
November 26th: Game 2 TBD Maui Invitational (Lahaina, Hawai’i)
November 27th: Game 3 TBD Maui Invitational (Lahaina, Hawai’i)
December 3rd: Big Ten/ACC Challenge Duke
Playing fellow “blue blood” Kentucky in the Champions Classic will be a challenge that the veteran laced Spartans will be up for the task for. Then the Spartans travel to play likely pre-season top 15 Big East opponent Seton Hall in the Gavitt Tipoff Games. Michigan State will then take the voyage across the country to Hawai’i to participate in the loaded Maui Invitational were they can face teams such as “blue blood” Kansas or ACC for Virginia Tech as well as a possible re-match from last season with PAC 12 UCLA. After returning home from Maui, the Spartans face yet another “blue blood” in Duke in a rematch of last season’s Elite Eight NCAA Tournament game.
To put the Spartans non-conference schedule in perspective, Michigan State can easily play a list of “blue blood” schools in Kentucky, Duke, UCLA, and Kansas to go with playing at Seton Hall and facing off against Virginia Tech in Maui. It can be argued that this may end up the toughest non-conference schedule that Michigan State has ever played.
The Big Ten Conference Schedule and Overall Schedule Breakdown
The Big Ten conference slate will test the Spartans once again. Let’s take a look at an impressive Big Ten conference schedule.
Big Ten Conference Schedule
TBD: at Indiana
TBD: Iowa
TBD: Illinois
TBD: at Illinois
TBD: Maryland
TBD: at Maryland
TBD: Minnesota
TBD: at Minnesota
TBD: Michigan
TBD: at Michigan
TBD: at Nebraska
TBD: Northwestern
TBD: at Northwestern
TBD: Ohio State
TBD: Penn State
TBD: at Penn State
TBD: at Purdue
TBD: Rutgers
TBD: Wisconsin
TBD: at Wisconsin
The highlights of Michigan State’s Big Ten conference schedule is home and away’s with Michigan, Wisconsin, and Maryland. The disappointments of the schedule is not playing Purdue and Indiana at home as well as only playing Ohio State and Iowa once. Even though the dates of the Big Ten conference games have not been released yet, it appears to be an interesting Big Ten conference slate for Michigan State.
Next. Biggest takeaways from 2019 recruiting classes. dark
It is understandable why head coach Tom Izzo canceled the August overseas trip to Spain as Michigan State prepares for a very challenging upcoming 2019-2020 season. As discussed already, Michigan State has a lot coming back with a great group of Spartan returning players and a three freshmen joining the already talented Michigan State squad. With a loaded non-conference schedule and competing in a very deep Big Ten conference, the Spartans will be will prepared for a deep NCAA Tournament run in 2020.