It's seven games into the season and the men's basketball team still seems to be sleepwalking through its games against weaker opponents, relying on talent instead of hard work and discipline.
The No. 13 Spartans (5-2) were outrebounded and tallied more turnovers than assists in the first half of their game against Arkansas-Little Rock on Saturday, but awoke in the second half to escape with a 72-67 victory.
MSU head coach Tom Izzo said his team needs to gain a sense of toughness, both mentally and physically, if they are going to have any success down the road.
"Remember the old 'PPTPW,'" Izzo said. "'Players Play; Tough Players Win.' It's simple. I put it in on the board at the end of the game, and then I told them, 'That is MSU's brand, and that is the winner's brand.'
"To win over 16 games in a conference, to win over a season and to get to a Final Four or advance in the NCAA Tournament, you've got to have it. Right now we're searching for it."
Arkansas-Little Rock (3-2) scored the game's first five points, and led by as many as seven, before MSU closed the first half with a 14-7 run to go into the break tied at 30. The Green and White emerged from halftime looking fresh and energetic, widening the gap with a 14-2 run that Arkansas-Little Rock was never able to recover from.
Izzo used more of his bench than in the previous six games of the season, as both junior forward Delco Rowley and redshirt freshman center Idong Ibok saw playing time in the first half. Senior forward Matt Trannon, playing in his first game of the season, logged five minutes.
Izzo said he hoped the reserves would provide the Spartans with a spark down low, but the three players combined for just two points, two rebounds and zero blocks in 15 minutes of play.
"I can't keep fumbling through guys," Izzo said. "I gave guys some chances at that forward position, and now I'm going to have to get down to two or three guys and really see who comes out."
Trannon said he is comfortable playing power forward, but is still learning the small forward position. He said he'll have to rely on help from his teammates until he memorizes his assignments.
"They have to let me know what it is when we go out there," Trannon said. "I know most of the plays, but I haven't gotten used to running them yet from a different position."
Senior guard Maurice Ager said the unusual rotation of players makes it hard for the players to get in rhythm, but will serve the team well in the long run.
"Those guys haven't played much," Ager said. "They're still learning. They haven't played to get confidence in themselves, so it's tough. They've just got to continue to get better."
One reason for the Spartans' sloppiness might be their irregular practice schedule. Saturday's game was the Spartans sixth in the last two weeks. Ager said the Spartans haven't had the time to improve individually.
"It doesn't give us a lot of time to get better for ourselves, because we're always busy preparing for other teams," Ager said. "We've got to look at the time during Christmas break to really concentrate on us."
Paul Davis overcame a quiet first half to lead the Spartans in scoring with 23 points, and Ager was close behind with 22. Lekheythan Malone put 19 points on the board for the Trojans.
The Spartans face No. 8 Boston College on Tuesday. The game tips off at 9 p.m. at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
