That year MSU reached the Final Four for the third year in a row.

On Tuesday, MSU defeated No. 1 Kentucky, 78-74, in the highly anticipated Champions Classic at the United Center in Chicago, almost guaranteeing a jump to the top of thew polls if they can knock off both teams.

But for the Spartans, it’s not the ranking that matters.

“We want to be No. 1 at the end of the season, not the beginning,” senior point guard Keith Appling said after defeating Kentucky.

The only roadblocks for MSU are the Columbia Lions and Portland Pilots, both of which the Spartans will play in the host round of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic in East Lansing. MSU will play Columbia at 9 p.m. Friday night, and will play Portland at 7 p.m. Monday. Both games are at Breslin Center.

This will be the first time MSU and Columbia have played each other, and is the first time Columbia has faced a Big Ten opponent since Dec. 11, 1993, when they played Penn State.

If Columbia was to knock off the Spartans this weekend, it would be the first time the Lions have beaten a Big Ten team since the 1970-71 season.

Both Columbia and Portland will be a tough test with MSU’s experience, ability to run the floor and rebounding prowess.

“We’ve been trying to run since last year,” sophomore guard Gary Harris said. “We put a big emphasis on it this summer and we have the guys to do it. Everybody’s been in the gym conditioning all summer; this is what we worked for, to run like this.”

With MSU being a host school, they will travel to Brooklyn, N.Y., to play Virginia Tech and either Oklahoma or Seton Hall from Nov. 22-23.