Coming off its first road win at Penn State, the MSU men’s basketball team looks to duplicate that feat in Iowa.
Like MSU (11-7 overall, 2-3 Big Ten), the No. 17 Hawkeyes (13-7, 2-4) have been struggling in conference play. Iowa’s most recent blemish, Saturday’s 63-50 loss, came at the hands of traditional conference doormat Northwestern (10-6, 2-3).
With Big Ten title dreams lingering, MSU can expect the Hawkeyes to come out strong at 7 p.m. today in Iowa City, Iowa.
But the Spartans have Big Ten dreams of their own, and a win tonight would put MSU back in the title hunt.
“We feel like they’re the ones to beat, but I think other people feel we’re the people to beat,” sophomore guard Marcus Taylor said. “Every team that plays us is going to bring their A-game, especially Iowa, they’re going to be playing at home so it will be tough on us.”
MSU is beginning to pick up momentum after a few early bumps in the road. But if the Spartans snag a win in Iowa City, it would be their biggest win since Dec. 15 against Arizona.
Junior forward Adam Ballinger said a victory tonight could be the right medicine to make up for MSU’s sickening conference start.
“I think it’s a real big (game),” Ballinger said. “Starting how we did, 0-3, maybe we can get a little bit back by going to Iowa and trying to beat a very good team. It’s a tough place to play and they’re a very good team. But I think we’re going in there with a little bit of momentum winning on the road and I think we feel pretty good.”
MSU can feel good now, but when the Spartans hit the floor on ESPN’s Super Tuesday, they’ll need an answer for the in-and-out game of preseason All-America candidates Luke Recker and Reggie Evans.
Last season, Evans led the nation in rebounds with 11.9 per game. Recker, on the other hand, handled the scoring with 18.1 points per game.
Together, Recker and Evans are a potent mix. Any misfire from Recker, and Evans is looking for an easy putback.
With that in mind, the Spartans need to be at the top of their signature defensive and rebounding games to keep things close.
“Evans gets all the rebounds down low, so we got to make sure we cut him out down on the offensive and defensive glass,” Taylor said. “Recker, he comes off a lot of screens and he’s ready to shoot every time he catches the ball, so we all have to be on his heels when he comes off them.”
But in a Big Ten conference with so much parity, it’s hard to predict how to go about a win.
MSU junior forward Al Anagonye has one simple answer to a contest that many thought held conference title implications in the preseason.
“Every game is a big game in the Big Ten, no matter who you play,” Anagonye said. “The urgency is getting back to winning. Getting back to what we are, who we are, that’s it. The intensity we always had.”
