EAST
LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State coach Tom Izzo put a big
emphasis on his team's game Wednesday night against 18th-ranked
Texas.
Izzo was returning from his one-game
suspension because of a secondary NCAA rule violation, and his team was
trying to break out of its familiar December funk.
It
was a perfect opportunity for the Spartans, in their final
nonconference game before the Big Ten opener next week, to show they
really did deserve that preseason No. 2 ranking.
The script didn't go as planned, however.
Michigan State shot 29 percent and committed 10 of its 16 turnovers in
the second half, leading to a 67-55 loss.
The Spartans (8-4) have lost three of their past six games.
Time to
panic?
Probably not, but some are starting to
question whether this team will turn it on, as so many of Izzo's teams
have done over the years to peak in March for the NCAA tournament.
"You have to be worried because we
haven't won a big game," said forward Draymond Green, MSU's locker-room
leader. "But we're not worried to the point we're discouraged and we
don't believe in ourselves. We'll get it
together."
Izzo reminded everyone that teams can look
a lot worse than they really are when their shots aren't falling, which
was certainly the case for the 12th-ranked Spartans. Green
and forward Delvon Roe were 1-for-8 apiece, and guards Korie Lucious and Keith
Appling each were 1-for-6.
Lucious (ankle) and Appling
(head) didn't practice Sunday through Tuesday and, perhaps not surprisingly,
didn't play well. Point guard Kalin Lucas is still trying to regain his
burst on the fast break following offseason surgery for a ruptured
Achilles' tendon. Izzo admitted he might have to reconsider how his team
tries to run if Lucas doesn't recover soon.
Still,
this was a game the Spartans were supposed to win at home, especially
when they were supposed to be so hungry for a
victory. Instead, only two Spartans scored in double figures, Lucas with 17 points and Durrell Summers with 11.
"Our best players have to play better," Izzo
said. "Delvon's got to make layups. Draymond didn't shoot as well and
wasn't in the flow of the game. Durrell's got to play better.
He's a great player. Great players have to play
great."
Green is clearly pressing right now, trying
to do too much to make up for his struggling teammates. He scored only
four points and fouled out with 5:12
remaining.
Michigan State took a 32-31 lead early in
the second half, but Texas took control with a 24-8 run. Two Michigan
State turnovers led to a dunk and a layup.
The
Longhorns (10-2) hit three 3-point shots in 91 seconds for a
55-40 lead with 13:21 remaining. MSU never got closer than nine points
the rest of the way.
Texas, which also beat North
Carolina on Saturday in Greensboro, N.C., ended the Spartans' 52-game
nonconference home winning streak. The last nonconference opponent to
win at the Breslin Center was Duke in 2003.
"That
means a lot," Texas' Jordan Hamilton said. "Michigan State is a great
program. We played hard, we played aggressive. Great road
win."
Hamilton led the Longhorns with 21 points.
Tristan Thompson, a 6-foot-8 freshman sensation, had 17 points and 15
rebounds. Forward Gary Johnson added 14 points.
"We knew we had
to come in here and match their physicality," Thompson
said.
They did that and more.
"I
love the way they play," Izzo said of the
Longhorns.
Izzo called it the most physical game he has
seen in years.
"It was absolute fisticuffs down
there," Izzo said. "I thought we competed; we just didn't finish.
"We did have some shots; we did have some layups.
When you turn it over and miss shots, you look so
ugly."
In reality, there is some legitimate concern,
even if it's early.
Just where is this
Michigan State team headed? Will the Spartans snap
out of it for the conference season or at least by March
Madness? Or are they simply headed for an
underachieving season?
Based on history, it would be
crazy to overreact. The four losses have all been to teams ranked in
this week's Associated Press poll, including No. 1 Duke, No. 4
Connecticut and No. 5 Syracuse.
However,
