The Spartans (12-5 overall, 3-1 Big Ten)mtg have been finding ways to win, and Saturday they get a chance to continue their win streak and finally defeat an AP Top 25 team when they travel to College Park, Maryland for a rematch with No. 14 Maryland.

“Traveling to Maryland for the first time will be interesting,” Izzo said. “I’ve been there once before for a game and I’m sure it’ll be Fourth of July and Christmas. Big weekend game, big T.V. game. I hear they’re honoring Gary Williams, so it’ll be a festive day.”

Williams, the former head basketball coach at Maryland, was inducted into both the the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014.

In the first meeting, Maryland and MSU needed double-overtime before the Terrapinsmtg came away with a two-point victory in their inaugural Big Ten openermtg. Freshman guard Melo Trimble was terrific, scoring 17 points, 12 of which came from the free-throw line.

Trimble torched MSU’s guards, blowing by them and penetrating the lane at ease. According to Izzo, he “drove it down our throat.” However, the Spartans played solid defense on the perimeter, holding Maryland to just 33.3 percent shooting from the field.

“If you ask me what do we gotta do this week, we gotta rebound better, and another interesting stat, they had zero free throws the first half and 32 the second, so we gotta defend without fouling,” Izzo said.

Trimble’s success against MSU wasn’t just a fluke, either. He’s taken a conference-leading 136 free throws, making 88.2 percent of them.

For the Spartans, senior forward Branden Dawson mtgplayed his first game after missing two with a wrist injury. He appeared to be affected by the brace he was wearing, turning the ball over twice and even losing control on the way up for shots.

In the three games since, Dawson has averaged more than 13 points and 12 rebounds per game. Whether or not he can keep up these numbers will be a key factor if MSU hopes to pull out a win.

MSU will have a pretty healthy squad for the game, after medical tests revealed that junior forward Matt Costello is “fine” and junior forward Denzel Valentine was discovered to have an ulcer on his throat, but he is about 90 percent, according to Izzo. He also mentioned that freshman forward Javon Bess mtgis “the best he’s been” all season.

Maryland has gone 3-1 since the teams met, with the loss coming in shocking fashion on the road at Illinois.

Saturday’s game is scheduled for a 4 p.m. tipoff and will be televised on CBS.