Big Ten Basketball power rankings: Michigan State, Wisconsin takes big jumps
By Joey Loose
2. Michigan State (9-2, 2-0)
Michigan State has been the class of the Big Ten for decades under Tom Izzo, and still possesses the conference’s most recent national championship. There was a lot of talent lost from last year’s roster, but Gabe Brown, Marcus Bingham, Malik Hall, and several others are back and looking good early for the Spartans. It hasn’t been a perfect start to the season, but the Spartans are showing that they could be a top team again this season.
An opening night loss to Kansas and a loss to Baylor in the Bahamas are two acceptable blemishes for the Spartans. They’ve won road games against Butler and Minnesota, knocked off two solids teams (Loyola-Chicago and UConn) at the Battle 4 Atlantis, and took care of business in their first two Big Ten games. There have only been a couple of cupcakes on this schedule; Michigan State is already quite battle tested.
Michigan State is by no means perfect, and this team is certainly exceeding expectations early in the season. The defense looks elite once again, and ranks in the top 10 in defensive efficiency, having not given up more than 68 points in any of their nine wins. Lately, the Spartans have started hitting their long-range shots and the offense has really shined to begin Big Ten play. Michigan State looks fantastic early on, even without a star turning heads on a nightly basis, and could threaten for another Big Ten title.