The game comes days after MSU shooting guard Joshua Langford was announced out for the remainder of the season by the team on Wednesday due to a left ankle injury. But to understand the recent shortcomings of Indiana, The State News caught up with Ben Portnoy, one of the men's basketball reporters covering the Hoosiers for the Indiana Daily Student, the school's publication.

He explained the current state of Hoosier basketball and gave his prediction for the game. Here's what he had to say.

Editor's note: Some of the conversation has been edited for clarity.

Q: I know IU has lost seven in a row, including a big game against Rutgers on the road on Wednesday. What has been going so wrong for the Hoosiers lately?

Portnoy: I mean, the simplest way to put it is confidence. You know, wins build confidence and there hasn't been a lot of that in the last month. Indiana really was riding high heading into that first game against Michigan the middle of January. Since then, it’s really just fallen off the wheels. This is a team that you know, isn't getting the offensive looks that they got early on in the season. And teams are game planning a lot better for Romeo Langford and Juwan Morgan. You know, those guys really haven’t gotten a lot of help outside of those two to open things up on the offensive end. 

The other really major thing too is injuries. Every team in the country deals with injuries, but this is a team that isn't getting the offensive looks that they got early on in the season. 

Q: What have you seen schematically in IU’s play? I know Romeo Langford is a one-man show. Maybe from a fundamental stance, have you seen any flaws in the way Indiana has played since Big Ten play resumed?

Portnoy: I think the biggest thing is just spacing on the floor. Langford can hit shots from pretty much anywhere inside the paint. His 3-point shot hasn’t been great, but Juwan Morgan isn’t necessarily getting the looks he got early on in the beginning of nonconference play. He was kind of a one-man wrecking crew even with Langford on the floor. Romeo’s a heck of a basketball player, but I think that Juwan Morgan opens things up for him on the wings with how much attention he attracts down low.  They’re both still getting their points but it's not necessarily the same efficiency there was earlier in the season. And I think some of it just comes from teams being able to game plan for that. Indiana is a team that really has struggled from behind the 3-point line and until they can hit a 3-point shot, teams don’t need to really respect them from that range. 

Q: I know there was a lot of anticipation and hype around the Archie Miller hire, has the honeymoon phase worn off?

Portnoy: I would say so. But I would also say that I think the Indiana fan base is one that gets riled up pretty easily. I think people sometimes forget that this is year one-and-a-half right now for Archie Miller. They’re still playing with a lot of Tom Crean guys, this is still a team in transition. And I think that, to some degree, yes, the shine of Archie Miller coming to IU has worn off, but at the same time I think that there's definitely a level of misunderstanding that this was a quick fix. 

Q: For Saturday’s game, since IU has lost seven in a row, what do they have to do to come into East Lansing and get a road win?

Portnoy: They need to hit a 3-pointer that's for dang sure. Indiana's really shot the ball poorly from 3-point all season long. Evan Fitzner was a guy who came from St. Mary’s out in California and was expected to give them a sharpshooter. He hasn’t made a 3-pointer, I think, since the Central Arkansas game in late December and that’s not for a lack of trying. With the team, he has really no confidence in his shot at all at this point. Indiana just doesn't have a guy who can hit a 3-point shot.

If Indiana is to put any pressure on Michigan State, it’s gotta be from getting something going behind the 3-point line. I mean, Indiana has got guys, Romeo Langford and Juwan Morgan, who are both guys capable of scoring in bunches. ... Those are guys that are going to get their points. It’s kind of a matter of if those guys go off or a third guys shows up then maybe they’ve got a shot.

Q: Score prediction?

Portnoy: I haven’t seen any Vegas lines out or anything like that. But my guess is Michigan State probably opens up somewhere around a 10-point favorite. I think Michigan State is going to win this game big. I think Indiana, like I said, is bottoming out right now and things pretty much look like they’re going to get worse before they get better.

MSU 80, IU 60.