NCAA Basketball: Kentucky, Arkansas fall in latest top 25 power ranking
By Joey Loose
18. Michigan State (2-2)
Things have not gone according to plan early in a season that was supposed to be another breakout campaign at Michigan State. The Spartans dropped a tough home game to James Madison on opening night and were abysmal shooting the ball from outside the arc. Things were a little better in week two, though the Spartans clearly aren’t playing to their potential quite yet.
Unfortunately, Michigan State got their second loss of the season on Tuesday night, falling 74-65 to a great Duke squad in Chicago as part of the Champions Classic. Tyson Walker had 22 points and the Spartans did shoot the ball much better than in their prior two games. They were back in the win column Friday night against Butler, winning 74-54 over the Bulldogs as part of the Gavitt Tipoff Games. Walker’s 21-point effort led the team again while Malik Hall added 12 points and 9 rebounds.
What exactly can we gleam from Michigan State’s performance through two weeks? A Spartans team that started the year in the Top 5 certainly doesn’t look like a national contender or the consistent squad we expected, though they bounced back nicely against Butler and do have the talent and potential to contend in the Big Ten. After a Sunday date with Alcorn State the Spartans face another tough matchup against Arizona as part of the Acrisure Classic.