Michigan seeking ‘revenge,’ expecting a ‘physical’ game against Michigan State

Michigan basketball’s game against Michigan State Tuesday night is the Wolverines’ most important game of the season.

While the in-state rivalry is important, so much rests on the contest because Michigan is running out of chances to pick up the two or three more wins it needs to earn an NCAA Tournament bid. The Wolverines have two more games in a row at home (MSU, Iowa) before taking on Ohio State in Columbus, and Tuesday against the Spartans is considered the easiest remaining game, per Kenpom. Grabbing a win over Tom Izzo and Co. is crucial so that there’s some sort of margin for error in the last two games, especially considering the Maize and Blue will have played four games in the last eight days of the regular season, with fatigue being a possibility.

Revenge, rivalry, tournament chances … pick a reason why: This one means more than the others.

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Soon after Michigan’s 93-85 loss to Illinois Sunday afternoon, the Wolverines’ focus shifted to Michigan State.

“We don’t really have time to let it soak in, honestly,” fifth-year senior guard DeVante’ Jones said. “It’s a quick turnaround, so we have to get right to it.”

NCAA Tournament chances and potential seeding don’t come up in the locker room, freshman wing Caleb Houstan revealed. The Maize and Blue — who were preseason favorites to win the Big Ten but are all but out of the regular-season title race — have long been blocking out the noise, anyway. But the Michigan players are well aware of what’s at stake.

“You just have to stay focused on the next game,” Houstan said. “I feel like everything will take care of itself. You just have to focus on what’s coming up, and then eventually you’ll get to the point that you want to. We’ve just got to stay focused, stay locked in on the next game — which is Michigan State on Tuesday — and just go from there.”

“We definitely understand that every game is big for us, and that every win helps us,” Jones added. “We don’t want to lose any game. It’s day by day with us, focusing on recovery, rehab and focusing on the next game.”

Jones added that Michigan is indeed ‘desperate’ heading into the matchup with Michigan State and any outing the rest of the way.

“Knowing that we need this win, it’s a big game for us,” Jones said. “I know that the environment and energy is going to be very high, so that’s going to boost us, for sure. Now, we’re just going to get into the film, recover and be ready for that game Tuesday night.”

What Michigan Is Expecting In Rivalry Matchup

Tuesday is also an opportunity for Michigan to avenge its 83-67 loss in East Lansing Jan. 29. The Wolverines haven’t forgotten how the second half went, and while Michigan State won that one and beat Purdue last Saturday, the Spartans aren’t world beaters.

“There’s definitely a sense of urgency,” Jones, who had six points on seven shots and was benched for a long stretch in the second half of the loss to the Spartans, said. “I feel like up in East Lansing, we didn’t play how we play — especially myself.

“So coming in Tuesday night, I’m going to come in and be aggressive with my teammates, especially looking for [sophomore center] Hunt[er Dickinson], looking for [fifth-year senior guard] Eli [Brooks], those guys. I feel like this is a revenge game for us, with the history of both teams. It’s definitely going to be an exciting one.”

Houstan also got his first taste of the rivalry in the aforementioned loss, when he scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds. He’s elevated his game since then, having scored 21 points in each of the last two games, and should be more ready for the challenge.

“It’s a really physical game,” Houstan said of the rivalry with Michigan State. “That’s probably the biggest thing I took away from it — it was a really physical game, and both sides are very passionate. Those are the two biggest things.”