MSU faces four quad-one opponents in the next month and seven straight teams ranked in the top 80 of adjusted efficiency per KenPom.

In a Michigan game where each of MSU’s shooting guards, Kur Teng, Divine Ugochukwu, and Trey Fort tallied 0 points, Izzo said he’s looking at shifting players around in various rotations.   

The next — and only real — possibility to fill that position would be freshman Jordan Scott. Scott has the length to drive and grab rebounds, as he did against Michigan, but can also knock down a key three-point shot. The freshman wing has shot 34% from deep over the past eight games, exuding rare confidence for a first-year player.

In the loss to Michigan, Scott scored 10 points on 3-7 shooting. Izzo gave Scott the nod to start the final 20 minutes of play, noting his relentless effort in the first half. 

Scott has found success coming off the bench this season, but Izzo said he still needs good options off the bench when his starters aren’t contributing.

“Sometimes you do need somebody coming off the bench. We started [Scott] in the second half because we felt like he played with the most energy,” Izzo said. “It's not just who starts the game, it's who comes off the bench. Who finishes the game is probably more important than who starts the game most times.”

Minnesota (10-12, 3-8 Big Ten) ranks 13th in the conference and has yet to find its groove. Despite the record, the Golden Gophers have dropped six league games by six points or fewer, making them a scrappy and resilient opponent — especially at home. Michigan State should expect a tough test inside Williams Arena.

Minnesota heavily relies on its guard play with senior Cade Tyson at the helm. His 20 points per game lead all Gophers. Tyson shoots 50% from the field and 38% from three, making him a deadly target if not intensely guarded at all times. Junior forward Jaylen Crocker-Johnson is the team’s lead big man, averaging 13.4 points a game on 41% shooting. 

Expect a lot of ball movement on Wednesday night. Minnesota and MSU rank first and second in the country, respectively, in assist percentage. 

Minnesota is undoubtedly a small-ball team; Izzo knows this. He said Minnesota is not far off from stringing a few wins together, but its depth has plagued the team this season.

“[Minnesota] has been up in just about every game they played. They had Wisconsin down 20. They had Nebraska down at halftime. They had Ohio State down and Illinois down, and a couple of those games were on the road,” Izzo said. “I think it's one of the tougher teams in the league. I think they lack depth, or they'd probably be eight and three instead of three and eight.”

After his fourth unique career-high of the season on Friday, this time a game-leading 31 points, Jeremy Fears will be the focal point of the offense in this game. The biggest question for him and the offense will be how well the Spartans can feed the post against a smaller opponent. 

Fears becomes a much more well-rounded floor general when he doesn’t have to be MSU’s number one option. Izzo said 31 points is nice, but he needs to see more out of everyone else on the court, too.

“When he's taking 11,12 shots, it's a good thing. When he’s taking 20 shots, it's a bad thing. But that's not always his fault. Some of that falls on other guys and how they're playing,” Izzo said. “What he has done a good job of is when he scores 29 points, he still gets nine or 10 assists.”

To this point, MSU’s biggest struggle is the turnover battle. The team ranks 251st in turnover percentage in Division 1; the only team worse in the Big Ten is Oregon. Nine of the past 10 national champions ranked inside the top 100 in turnover rate. Izzo said it's number one on his list of issues.

“Our biggest problem is we're turning the damn ball over too much,” Izzo said. “We can be one of the best defensive teams in the country, but we're turning the ball over, and people are getting some layups on us. You eliminate those, your defense gets even better.”

MSU will face Minnesota on Wednesday, Feb. 4, at 7:00 p.m. in an away match that will be broadcast on Big Ten Network. 

Izzo has never been by the book, and he’s sticking with his old-school style to clean up his team’s turnover problem.

“Sounds trite or ridiculous, but [in practice] every turnover we ran. Usually, you keep track, and maybe you run at the end–we ran at that point, there has to be a sense of urgency,” Izzo said. “I'm going to try something different. Is that punishment? Yes.”