Michigan State had one of the best sports weekends in the country

Michigan State basketball, hockey, gymnastics, and tennis all had stellar weekends as Spartan fans were treated to nothing but wins.

One of the two major college sports (football) has been done for quite some time now, but that hasn’t stopped Michigan State from finding success across its athletic programs. Basketball is the main focus right now in East Lansing, but there are other teams arguably finding more success than Tom Izzo’s squad right now.

This past weekend saw many of the Spartans’ programs compete and it may have collectively been the best weekend in the country.

Men’s basketball

Let’s begin with the biggest draw to the winter sports season. Michigan State basketball had arguably its biggest win of the season this year on Saturday. The Spartans defeated No. 10 Illinois 88-80 to put themselves firmly in the NCAA Tournament — for now.

The Breslin Center crowd was rocking all game and this was one of the best atmospheres of the season. I know all Spartan fans were paying attention to this game and were rewarded with a magnificent performance.

Hockey

Even though the men’s basketball team had a top-10 win, I’d argue the Michigan State hockey team had the best weekend out of all the MSU programs. The Spartans took on No. 11 Michigan twice this past weekend, defeating them in both games!

The first win came in Ann Arbor where the Spartans dominated the Wolverines 5-1 in front of their fans. Game two was played in Detroit and was their annual Duel in the D game. The Spartans beat Michigan again, this time 3-2, to win the Duel in the D for the first time since 2016.

The MSU hockey team is No. 6 in the country and No. 1 in the Big Ten with three weekends to go, so I highly suggest tuning in now as they chase a Big Ten championship.

Gymnastics

Another team chasing a Big Ten title is the Michigan State gymnastics team. They had a home meet against No. 25 Illinois which they won 197.475 to 196.275.

The gymnastics team now find themselves No. 10 in the country and in full control of the Big Ten race. The Spartans are 4-0 in conference play and have already defeated Michigan which is their biggest competition in the Big Ten. MSU is the reigning regular-season champions and it has a great chance of repeating this year.

Men’s/Women’s Tennis

To wrap it all up, both the men’s and women’s tennis teams had great weekends as well. The Michigan State women’s tennis team won three different matches this past weekend. This included dominant wins over Toledo, Western Michigan, and Eastern Michigan. This takes them to a solid 5-2 record to start their season.

The Michigan State men’s tennis team also played this weekend and found a lot of success. The 16th-ranked Spartans beat Clemson at home in dominant fashion 6-1. Michigan State is off to a 9-0 start and has earned their highest ranking in program history. They also have the No. 1 ranked doubles team in the country in Max Sheldon and Ozan Baris. Something special might be brewing for the first time in the men’s tennis program.

So in a weekend highlighted by MSU basketball, many other programs in East Lansing saw just as much success if not more. The basketball team might not be competing for a Big Ten title, but some of our other winter sports are. Get on board the hype train as this winter season will be fun.