Tom Izzo: Penn State collapse was one of worst losses in career

Michigan State is one of multiple college basketball teams that’s had an up-and-down season in 2021-22. Although the Spartans were 14-2 on Jan. 12, they’ve gradually declined since then and now sit at 18-7 overall with a 9-5 mark in Big Ten play after a 62-58 loss to a nine-win Penn State team on Tuesday night. The loss to the Nittany Lions marked Michigan State’s third in its last four games.

While Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has coached many games over the course of his career, he went as far as to say that the loss to Penn State was one of the most disappointing he’s had while the head coach of the Spartans, according to Chris Solari of the Detroit Free Press.

“I did not like the way we competed, I did not like the toughness, and I did not like the mental fortitude,” Izzo said, as Solari wrote on Twitter. Solari added that Izzo noted his team is working on it because he has “great guys.”

In the Spartans’ loss to Penn State, they scored just 24 points in the first half and could never find their usual spark. It was an evenly-played game between the two sides, but Penn State – which was a 3.5-point underdog coming in – played with more energy and was able to come out on top.

Following its setback, Michigan State returns to action Saturday at home against No. 12 Illinois. Tipoff is set for noon ET on ESPN.

Big Ten announces tipoff time for pivotal conference showdown

As the Big Ten race heats up, the standings are tightly packed. Tuesday morning, the league announced the tipoff time for what could be a huge matchup prior to the conference tournament.

Michigan State and Purdue face off Feb. 26, and the Big Ten announced that game will tipoff at noon ET on ESPN. The two teams are right in the middle of the race to the top of the league. Purdue is currently in first place in the league standings with a half-game lead, while Michigan State is just two games behind the Boilermakers.