Michigan State Basketball: Beware of the remaining ‘Spartan Killers’

As the Michigan State basketball season continues, there are always going to be certain players that give the Spartans trouble along the way.

Michigan State basketball opened up league play last week, starting against Wisconsin and then it headed to Nebraska. The Spartans have been up and down this year, as Tom Izzo continued his trend of playing top-tier opponents to start the season. He is a firm believer that to be the best, you have to beat the best. Year after year, it is guaranteed that MSU will play at least a few other blue-bloods and, more often than not, the Spartans will drop a few. Yet, come March, Izzo almost always has his guys playing their best basketball of the season. 

Some other things are also guaranteed each season. While Michigan State has certain programs’ numbers — such as Northwestern (.846 winning percentage) and Nebraska (.833 winning percentage before Sunday’s loss) — there are absolutely some that have the Spartans’.

Here are some of the yearly ‘Spartan Killers’ to be wary of as this season continues, both within Big Ten play and in a few other non-conference games still to be played.

Boo Buie, Northwestern

Boo Buie has terrorized the Michigan State Spartans since the day he stepped on campus. The 6-foot-2 guard averaged over 10 points per game as a true freshman and has only gotten better since. Now a fifth-year senior, Buie is averaging 20.3 points per game on 40 percent 3-point shooting. It feels as though Buie uses his matchups against Michigan State to work on his craft each time they play. A simple Google search for Boo Buie vs. Michigan State will yield multiple headlines similar to the following. 

“Northwestern’s Boo Buie again stuns Michigan State in 70-63 upset win” – Spartans Illustrated on NW’s 2022 win against MSU

Or something like this, from ESPN in 2020.

“Boo Buie, Northwestern stun ‘inept’ No. 4 Michigan State”

Buie’s stat lines throughout his career against Michigan State are incredible. Three out of his six games against the Spartans, Buie has gone for 20+, including a then career-high 30-point performance back in 2020. Twice, Boo Buie has set new career highs in scoring against the green and white. Now having the best statistical year of his career, Buie will take on Michigan State at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Jan. 7, and then again at the Breslin on March 6.

The Spartans better be prepared.

Mackey Arena

Purdue, as a team, deserves credit for the way they play the Spartans. Matt Painter has a contending team every year that rivals Michigan State basketball for the Big Ten title. But what is even more difficult to overcome for the Spartans is any game specifically at Mackey Arena. It’s almost supernatural how, every year, Michigan State plays its worst inside Mackey.

Over the last 10 years, MSU is just 1-7 in West Lafayette, including six losses in a row. Even more, all but one of those have been double-digit losses. 

What makes it even more of a ‘Spartan Killer’ is that while MSU is drowning at Mackey, the Boilermakers usually play out of their minds. Any Spartan fan likely still has flashbacks of Ryan Cline, Dakota Mathias, or Carson Edwards going unconscious from deep. Or Caleb Swanigan or Zach Edey converting and-one after and-one.

It’s a tale as old as time. MSU can’t buy a bucket at Mackey, and Purdue gets red hot. It’s a tale that seems to have some higher power backing.

*Insert random mid-major guard here*

Obviously, the header is a joke, but it does seem to ring true randomly each year.

Time and time again, Michigan State schedules a game against a mid-major program that gives the fans more heartburn than wanted. Most of the time, these matchups are ‘get healthy’ games. But, whether that is an in-state matchup against the Oakland Grizzlies or a random mid-major program across the country, it seems that Michigan State always has to deal with a guard having a career night.

I still have nightmares of Key Felder lighting Michigan State up for 37 points back in 2015. Or Bucknell’s Zach Thomas having 27 against MSU in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. This does make sense, though. When a mid-major comes to the Breslin to play the Spartans, they normally have nothing to lose. All the pressure is on Michigan State, and this allows opposing players, specifically guards, to let it fly with courage. I’m not even going to bring up Getty Potts out of Middle Tennessee State. 

This is especially worrisome as Michigan State welcomes both Oakland and Indiana State to the Breslin over the next three weeks. Indiana State is currently 9-1 with a NET ranking of 13. Keep an eye out for Sycamore guard Isaiah Swope.