Can Michigan State basketball still win the Big Ten?

Michigan State basketball has gotten off to an 0-2 start in Big Ten play, but what does the path to a title look like?

Michigan State basketball is looking as good as they have all season. They are riding high on a four-game win streak after an 87-75 win over Indiana State on Saturday. Now the Spartans turn their attention back to the Big Ten as we have 18 conference games left to finish the season.

We all know how poorly MSU started this year. But is it still possible for the Spartans to win the Big Ten? Let’s take a look at MSU and some of the key teams we will have to beat if we want to win the regular season title.

Before we do that, here are the current Big Ten Men’s basketball standings.

2-0: Indiana
1-0: Illinois, Northwestern, Wisconsin
1-1: Purdue, Nebraska, Ohio State, Minnesota, Maryland, Penn State, Michigan
0-1: Rutgers
0-2: MSU, Iowa

What does Michigan State basketball have to do to win the Big Ten?

As you can see above, MSU has its work cut out for it. An 0-2 start is not what the Spartans imagined at the start of the season and it makes it extremely difficult to come back and win the Big Ten. But the way they have been playing recently, I definitely still think it’s possible.

To put it simply, Michigan State needs to keep rattling off wins. Thankfully for MSU, it has a favorable stretch of games in front of us. Five of MSU’s next six games I feel confident in. Those five games are Penn State, at Northwestern, Rutgers, Minnesota, at Maryland. All five of those teams aren’t having spectacular years and I think Michigan State simply is just better.

The one game coming up that does give me some concern is when we travel to Illinois on Jan. 11. Outside of Purdue, Illinois has been the best team in the Big Ten so far. However, its star player, Terrence Shannon Jr., has been suspended indefinitely, so they may not be as strong anymore. Illinois plays Purdue in a couple of days so we’ll get a good idea of how the Illini have adjusted soon.

To even have a chance of winning the Big Ten, Michigan State probably needs a 15-5 conference record. So that means going 15-3 to finish the season. Not ideal if you ask me, but definitely possible. The Spartans will have to get a little lucky with how other teams perform, but it all starts now by winning at least five of these next six games.

Purdue Boilermakers

It is no secret that Purdue is the biggest competition in the Big Ten. The Boilermakers are No. 1 in the country and have huge wins already against Arizona, Marquette, Tennessee, and Gonzaga. They are clearly the top dogs in the conference and a lot will have to go wrong for them to fall to 15-5 in conference play.

Thankfully for Michigan State basketball, Purdue’s one loss this year was in the Big Ten when it lost on the road to Northwestern earlier in December. So this shows that even with all their big wins, they aren’t unbeatable. Don’t get me wrong, Northwestern is a solid team this year, but I’d put them slightly above average in the Big Ten. So if the Wildcats can beat them, so can a lot of other teams.

Michigan State only plays Purdue once this year and it’s unfortunately on the road. This game is on March 2 and has the potential to be the deciding game in the conference title race.

Illinois and Wisconsin

As I mentioned earlier, Illinois’ best player has been suspended indefinitely. Before this news, the Illini were the clear No. 2 team in the conference. Now I’m not so sure. The Illini have only played one game since Shannon was suspended and it was against a subpar opponent, so we really don’t know who this team is yet without him. Illinois travels to Purdue on Jan. 5 so we will learn how good it is then.

MSU does get two cracks at Illinois this season, on Jan. 11 and Feb. 10. The February game is in East Lansing and will be a must-win, but the game on the 11th will be massive for the Spartans. They potentially will have the chance to get above .500 in conference play and take down the second best Big Ten team. By no means am I guaranteeing a win, but depending on how Illinois looks without Shannon, MSU might have a good shot.

Wisconsin, on the other hand, we do know a lot about. I don’t think the Badgers are getting enough respect nationally. They obviously beat us already at the Breslin Center and beat a very good Marquette team as well.

The Badgers are 1-0 in conference play and I have them as the No. 3 Big Ten team right now. Wisconsin has a favorable stretch of games coming up as well, so the Badgers have a chance to prove they are a legit contender this year again. Michigan State does get a crack at revenge Jan. 26 when the Spartans travel to Wisconsin for a rematch.

Can MSU do it?

Michigan State has its work cut out, but I’m not counting the Spartans out. Tom Izzo has won the Big Ten many times before and we have learned countless times to never doubt him. A lot has to go their way, but right now I’d give the Spartans about a 15 percent chance to win a share of the Big Ten regular season title.