“We’re going to show up," Izzo said on Tuesday. "We’re going to have a team no matter who’s playing. We’re going to be there, and I think the guys are excited about the opportunity to play.”

Izzo said that freshman center Mady Sissoko, who tested positive for COVID-19 in early January and was among the first cases for MSU, will make the trip to New Jersey with the team. His status on playing remains unknown, and Izzo said that will depend how he practices on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Sophomore guard Steven Izzo and graduate student guard Joshua Langford were the other early COVID-19 detections for the Spartans; however, Tom Izzo wasn’t sure on their status come Thursday. 

Tom Izzo listed Langford as possible for Thursday, noting that although his positive test was identified later than Sissoko and Steven Izzo’s, his quarantine began from the onset of his symptoms, not with his positive test result.

Overall, Tom Izzo said that he expects to have 11 or 12 players available for the matchup against Rutgers. However, Tom Izzo will rely on the athletes who have been participating in individual and small group workouts during the off weeks as well as who he had in the team’s first regular practice on Monday.

“I’m going with the players that I had in practice yesterday that are full go,” Izzo said. “Anybody I get above that is going to be bonus material for me.”

Even though the team’s first regular practice happened Monday, the healthy players have continued to work out, both in small groups and individually with Tom Izzo, a system that redshirt junior forward Joey Hauser appreciated.

“It was good to get back in the gym,” Hauser said. “... We were all pretty tired, but he (Tom Izzo) brought the energy right away and we look at this time off as not a time to sit and mope around but a time to get better.”

With Brown, one of the Spartans more efficient shooters, out until early February due to Big Ten protocol, Tom Izzo said he will turn to Rocket Watts more in game play. He also praised Aaron Henry and Foster Loyer on their improvement during the past weeks. 

“We have spent a little more time with the Rocket Watts'." Tom Izzo said. "Aaron Henry has had a great couple of weeks off. He’s shooting the ball better and better, and I think he’s been a positive. Foster’s had a good couple of weeks. The guys that have had it that were able to almost work everyday one way or another other than a couple when we didn’t let anybody in the gym has been good.”

Sitting at 2-4 in conference play, the Spartans will look to take advantage of the time off by getting their season back on track.

“I don’t like what our record is totally," Tom Izzo said. "I didn’t like the last game we played that left a sour taste in your mouth now for 20 days … but it is what it is. We just got to move forward, and I feel really good that we can move forward."