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Sports | Basketball

BASKETBALL

New Year's resolution: start winning

So far 2003 has been an awful year for the MSU men's basketball team. But luckily for the Spartans (9-6 overall, 1-2 Big Ten), it is only 17 days into the new year and there is plenty of time to turn things around. Since the beginning of the year, MSU is 1-3.

BASKETBALL

Spartans need to prove themselves on road

West Lafayette, Ind. - Plain and simple, the Spartans eagerly anticipate a return to Breslin Center for a basketball game. But MSU (9-6 overall, 1-2 Big Ten) still has a road contest with Minnesota on Saturday before that happens Wednesday against Penn State (5-8, 0-2). And if this year is any clue, the Spartans could be near the cellar of the conference if they lose to the Golden Gophers. With its loss to Purdue on Tuesday night, the MSU men's basketball team not only lost its fourth game in five contests, but it fell to 2-5 this year when playing on the road or at a neutral site. "The times we've played on the road, things haven't gone our way," senior forward Aloysius Anagonye said.

BASKETBALL

Offensive woes hurt struggling Spartans

West Lafayette, Ind. - In basketball, offense plays a critical part in winning games. Tuesday night, the Spartans didn't have much of it.The end result was a 72-60 loss, which gave MSU (9-6 overall, 1-2 Big Ten) its fourth loss in five games.Offensively, the Spartans entered the game shooting 47.6 percent from the field.

BASKETBALL

Inconsistency a constant

Iowa City - Throughout the 2002-03 season, the MSU men's basketball team has been consistently inconsistent. Those inconsistencies were highlighted Saturday afternoon as the No.

BASKETBALL

Spartans shoot for first Big Ten road triumph

Iowa might not have big names on its roster. But the Hawkeyes pose some problems for the MSU basketball team.Because the Spartans hadn't concluded their game with Ohio State at the time of print, they were null to talk about their matchup with Iowa (9-3, 1-0 Big Ten). And unless they remember much from their games a year ago, MSU players were in the dark about the Hawkeye team."To tell you the truth, we haven't even looked at film on them yet," junior forward Adam Wolfe said following Tuesday's practice.

BASKETBALL

Spartans stumble to win

It was tough, physical and at times downright sloppy during No. 25 MSU's grinding win against Ohio State on Thursday at Breslin Center. The Spartans (9-4 overall, 1-0 Big Ten) outlasted the Buckeyes (7-5, 0-1) 66-55, halting a two-game losing skid.

BASKETBALL

Izzo expects players to improve on free throws

Heading in to their 53rd season of Big Ten men's basketball, No. 25 MSU is looking for a little charity - from the stripe, that is.After shooting 77.7 percent from the foul line in the first seven games of the season, MSU (8-4) has only shot 67.5 percent in the last five, which is below head coach Tom Izzo's standards.Izzo said missed free throws have "really cost us the last two games, as much as anything."Despite MSU's shooting woes, the Spartans are currently tied for fourth (72.8 percent) among Big Ten teams.

BASKETBALL

Spartans look to net Big Ten title again

After loaning out the Big Ten Championship trophy for a season, the Spartans will face tough tests in their quest to bring the prize back to MSU for a fifth time in six seasons. From the top to bottom of the conference, there isn't a clear cut championship favorite.