EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) -Tom Izzo hasn’t won a Big Ten title since 2001, when he won his fourth straight a season after winning the national title.
If Michigan State holds onto first place for six more weeks, the Spartans probably will look back at their come-from-behind win at Ohio State as a pivotal game.
“If we stay up there, it will be one of those games that we’ll look back and say it was a really big game for us,” Izzo said Monday. “I still think, though, someone will win the league with three or four losses.”
Michigan State (16-3, 6-1 Big Ten) slipped two spots to No. 9 in The Associated Press Top 25 poll after losing to Northwestern at home, snapping an 11-game winning streak and 28-game run at home, and rallying on the road against the Buckeyes on Sunday.
a career-high 26 points. “We had to make up for what happened the other night.”
The victory prevented Michigan State from falling into a first-place tie with Minnesota and allowing surging Purdue to pull within a half-game.
Ohio State was routing the Spartans early in the game and led with 13-plus minutes before they took over and won 78-67.
“It was important to bounce back from the Northwestern game to win a game that didn’t look like was going our way for a while,” Izzo said. “Now, we’re 4-0 on the road and I don’t think we’ve ever done that.”
Izzo’s correct.
The Spartans have won their first four road games in the Big Ten for the first time, heading into Thursday night’s game at Iowa. Then, they play Sunday at home against Penn State.
“The good news is, we’re not nearly as good as I think we can be,” Izzo said. “But when do we start to get closer to our potential? We’ve got Goran Suton back, but his knee is not the same, and Raymar Morgan is still sick.
“If we can get some guys back and get going, I still think we have a chance to be really good.”
Izzo, though, is quick to point out he’s not brimming with confidence because of the stiff competition in the conference. He claims the Big Ten hasn’t been this good – top to bottom – in his 14 seasons as a head coach at Michigan State.
He said the Big East and ACC might have better teams at the top of the conference than the Big Ten does, but lacks the depth of the Big Ten.
“I don’t think anybody feels comfortable going anywhere,” Izzo said. “I’ve always said that’s great for the fans and tough on the coaches. Our league is now to the point that there are no major upsets.
“Both the Big East and ACC, I think, have more teams at the bottom that aren’t as competitive or aren’t as good.”
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