What a difference a game makes.
Michigan's improbable win against Wisconsin on Sunday suddenly thrust the Wolverines into the batch of Big Ten NCAA Tournament hopefuls.
Add that to MSU's Big Ten Championship hopes, and Tuesday's rivalry game means more than it has in a while.
"In the last nine years, I think there's only been a couple times when it's been for as much as this one will be," head coach Tom Izzo said.
The game's importance for MSU is obvious. A win against U-M puts the Spartans one game closer to a Big Ten Championship, leaving them only two wins away from a league title.
The Wolverines, with the victory over No. 22 Wisconsin, now have another quality win to their credit - their win against No. 14 North Carolina State being another - and are among five Big Ten teams contending for a possible fourth tournament bid.
"They're going to come at us with everything they have because it's such a big game for them," junior guard Chris Hill said. "And the race, for us, is huge."
A commonly held belief is that the Big Ten will receive at least three NCAA Tournament bids. MSU, Illinois and Wisconsin are the favorites to receive those bids.
Whether a fourth, fifth or even sixth team gets invited has been debated.
Izzo said the Big Ten deserves at least five tournament bids. U-M, despite losing to Boston University at home and last place Minnesota, should be among those invited, he said.
"I don't think they have to beat us to get in," he said.
U-M coach Tommy Amaker recognized the renewed possibility of making the NCAA Tournament. It will be important for U-M's younger players - many of whom start and play significant minutes - to stay focused on Tuesday's game instead of wondering about the postseason, he said.
This season, Amaker has had to deal with a variety of issues related to the Wolverines' youth. Aside from senior Bernard Robinson Jr. and redshirt junior J.C. Mathis, every player in U-M's rotation is an underclassman.
U-M's frontcourt, although young, shows potential. Freshman forward Courtney Sims leads the Big Ten in blocked shots and sophomore center Graham Brown played with MSU sophomore center Paul Davis on the U.S. World Junior Basketball team last summer.
Despite its promising future, Amaker said his frontcourt isn't among the conference's best yet.
"A lot of people have the bulk and the experience," he said. "So, I'm not so certain that's an advantage for us right now, given the age of our players and the experience of our players."
U-M's inexperience has revealed itself in other areas, too.
Guard Daniel Horton, last year's Big Ten Freshman of the Year, has struggled to match last season's award-winning effort.
His scoring average, 11.5 points per game, is down nearly four points from last season, and he's averaging 3.2 turnovers to go with 3.3 assists, not a dazzling assist-to-turnover ratio for a point guard.
MSU recently has played through turnover problems of its own. So much so that Izzo joked about checking his team for colorblindness.
The Spartans have averaged 14.5 turnovers in their past four games.
"Whatever team doesn't turn it over probably has the best chance of winning," Izzo said.
