Tom Izzo dishes out high praise to Wisconsin after Michigan State's win

Tom Izzo and the No. 14 Michigan State Spartans picked up a huge win on Friday night, taking down the No. 8 Wisconsin Badgers on the road and snapping Wisconsin’s seven-game win streak in the process.

It was a substantial rebound for Izzo, whose Michigan State team was just six days removed from an abysmal showing against Northwestern — one that, in Izzo’s words, was “about as poor as I have since I’ve taken this job” — and it moved the Spartans to 15-3 (6-1 Big Ten) on the year.

“I’m happy we got a win and I’m happy we played better,” Izzo said. “It was hell these last three days. That’s the way it’s supposed to be.”

Perhaps more notably, though, Izzo dished out some heaping praise for the Wisconsin Badgers, who emerged as one of the Big Ten’s top teams, much to the surprise of the college basketball world.

“That was a big win for us, no question about it. Tough loss for Greg (Gard) but it seems like everybody’s got somebody out. I think the (Tyler) Wahl situation, although the last time we played Northwestern their leading scorer was out, and it’s always a worry because it seems like teams can rally and play good. But two hellacious players, two of the better players I’ve seen in this league in (Brad) Davison and (Johnny) Davis,” Izzo said, complimenting some of Wisconsin’s top players. “I’ve been in the league a long time and we did a good job on both of them and they torched us. That’s what great players do.”

The Davison-Davis guard duo had its way with Michigan State, and despite the game’s final score, they put together one of their best performances to date. Davis dropped 25 points on 8-of-20 from the field, plus five rebounds and four assists, while Davison scored 22 points on 8-of-12 from the field, along with two rebounds and three assists.

Michigan State, on the other hand, had a far more balanced offensive attack, with four players finishing in double digits; Max Christie, Tyson Walker and A.J. Hoggard had 12 points apiece, while Malik Hall had 14 points off the bench and Jaden Akins had 10 points of his own.

Next up, Michigan State will face another ranked team on the road, as Izzo’s Spartans will face No. 17 Illinois on Jan. 25. Wisconsin, on the other hand, will travel to Nebraska on Jan. 27.