Michigan State basketball: 3 bold predictions for Penn State battle

Michigan State basketball is headed back home for the first time with students back on campus in a month and that means the normal Izzone is back. This may not seem like a big deal, but the team feeds off the student section when it’s at full strength and we saw that during the Izzone Alumni game against Washington.

Now it’s Penn State coming to town as one of the highest-scoring teams in the country.

The Nittany Lions are a game removed from nearly upsetting Oregon in Happy Valley, falling by a single point. The Nittany Lions looked good enough to win that game and even led by double digits at one point but the Ducks fought back and stole the win from the jaws of defeat.

After a 12-2 start to the season and 2-1 mark in conference play, Penn State has lost three in a row and this might be their toughest stretch of the season, getting Illinois, Oregon, and Michigan State in back-to-back-to-back games.

Will the Spartans prevail? It’s time to get bold.

1. Frankie Fidler finally scores in double figures

Would you believe me if I told you that Frankie Fidler hasn’t scored 10-plus points in nearly a month? It’s now Jan. 15 and the Omaha transfer hasn’t crossed the double-digit threshold since Dec. 21 against FAU but it’s felt even longer than that.

Fidler is averaging 8.3 points per game in 18 minutes (half of the playing time he had a year ago) and he’s struggled rather mightily. He is shooting just 37 percent from the floor and 18 percent from deep, but he is shooting a career-best 92 percent from the line. In Sunday’s win over Northwestern, it felt like he got some of his confidence back. He scored eight points on 50 percent shooting to go along with five rebounds, a block, and a steal.

He’ll build on that and score 10-plus on Wednesday night to break the streak of four straight games without double-digit points.

2. MSU out-rebounds Penn State by 15-plus

While Michigan State basketball continues to win rebounding battles, the performance on the glass over the past few games has left a lot to be desired and you just know Tom Izzo has been on them at practice to fix it. Well, this is their opportunity as the Nittany Lions average just 36 boards per game to Michigan State’s 41 and we’ll see a dominant effort on both ends of the court from the Spartans.

Michigan State will hold the Nittany Lions to fewer than 10 offensive boards and will grab 10-plus of its own. We’ll see Jaxon Kohler finish with 10-plus rebounds while guys like Szymon Zapala and Coen Carr add 7-8. Michigan State dominates the glass 46-30.

3. The Spartans make at least 10 threes, cover the spread

The biggest question heading into Wednesday night’s game is whether star guard Ace Baldwin Jr. is playing for Penn State. If he is, this matchup could be difficult for the Spartans. If he’s not, Michigan State should cruise. Either way, I think the Spartans light up the scoreboard from deep and finish with 12 made threes in a comfortable win at home.

Let’s assume Baldwin does play, this game should be close in the first half before Michigan State pulls away late. They’ll hit those 12 threes to help hold off a comeback effort and win 84-69, covering the spread and holding one of the top scoring teams in the Big Ten under 70 points.

Michigan State basketball will improve to 6-0 in the Big Ten.