The Final Four Is Not On The Schedule - A Podcast Discussing Michigan State Basketball.

January 8, 2023: Michigan State heads back onto the road and will try to continue its winning streak of six straight and two in Big Ten Play as they head to Madison to take on the Badgers. In an arena that has historically been a house of pain MSU will look to stay in first place in the Big Ten.

Rod has stated it a number of times that MSU has a profile that looks more and more like a Wisconsin one which means that both teams will rely on their defense and ability to hit the outside shot. The Spartans struggled hitting wide open shots against Michigan and will look to bounce back on offense outside the arc.

For the Wisconsin preseason preview go to www.tffinots.com/Wisconsin2022

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January 7, 2023: In an ugly offensive game, MSU pulled out a win at the Breslin Center 59-53 over rival Michigan. Neither team could hit their shots as the Spartans launched at least 3 wide open air balls for 3. The only thing worse than MSU's outside shooting was Michigan's who shot 15% on 3-20. It was a game where MSU controlled by double digits halfway through the first half until late in the game.

This was a very good defensive performance by the Spartans who showed that their veteran backcourt will continue to be an asset throughout the Big Ten season. Also, Malik Hall looked more of himself in offense, defense, and conditioning as he logged over 20 minutes and contributed on both ends of the court.

UM Preview Episode Here

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January 5, 2022: Rivalry week is officially here now that MSU has dispatched Nebraska and awaits a matchup at home with cross state rival, Michigan. The Wolverines have struggled at times in the non-conference schedule but are in first place of the Big Ten with a 3-0 mark after defeating Penn State on Wednesday.

Last year, the teams split their series but if either team has title hopes, a series sweep would be loom huge for their chances to take the League. There are so many matchup questions with this game: can Sissoko neutralize Dickinson and/or can Hoggard and MSU's guards exploit Dickinson's struggles guarding on pick and rolls? Will the Spartans be able to rebound and defend at the levels they did against Nebraska? Finally, can Michigan State continue their outstanding 3 point shooting?

In what looks to be an intense contest on Saturday with so much at stake and the school rivalry at a more intense level than usual this has all the makings for a war. The difference might just be which team is able to maintain their poise and channel the energy in a useful manner.

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January 3, 2023: Michigan State welcomed in the new year with a decisive 74-56 victory over the visiting Nebraska Cornhuskers. In what is probably MSU's best complete game since the early season, they coasted out to a 22 point half time lead behind suffocating defense and a fantastic first half scoring effort from Tyson Walker (16 points).

MSU had one of their best offensive rebounding efforts collecting over 40% of their misses and prevented a good offensive rebounding team from getting anything going at only 25%. A number of Spartans other than Tyson Walker had good games including Joey Hauser with a second straight double double, AJ Hoggard with 9 assists and only one turnover, and Jaxon Kohler who finally got going offensively with a 5-5 10 point effort.

Listen to the Nebraska Preseason Preview Here

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January 1, 2023: As we enter a new year, Michigan State begins the Big Ten campaign in full with 18 games and a march to a potential championship. However, there are no easy wins in the Big Ten this year and protecting home court is a necessity after already losing their first to Northwestern. Fortunately, the Spartans will be full strength with a limited minutes Malik Hall as they host a feisty squad from Lincoln, NE.

This will be the last game without the Izzone so MSU will have to bring its own energy and not look past the Cornhuskers to their matchup against the Wolverines on Saturday. The first step in a Big Ten Championship begins Tuesday and if Michigan State has any serious designs on challenging for the title they need to take care of business.

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December 30, 2022: In what is the most significant development for anyone with hopes of MSU making some sort of run for a Big Ten title or NCAA tournament Final Four, the return of Malik Hall back on to the court was a big one. Now that Jaden Akins is almost back to where we hoped he would be starting the season, Hall played limited minutes but looked as if he hadn't ever stopped playing.

Malik Hall had 11 points on 3-4 shooting with 2-2 from 3 and 3-4 at the line in only 18 minutes of play. Perhaps even more importantly than his scoring was his presence on defense and just as a steadying force on both ends of the court as he made the Spartans so much more difficult to score against and defend with his versatility. Also of note were double-doubles from AJ Hoggard (11 points, 10 assists) and Joey Hauser (14 points, 12 rebounds). An all around solid game for Michigan State as they prepare to re-enter Big Ten play on Tuesday with Nebraska.

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December 29, 2022: Michigan State has its last non-conference tune up before Big Ten play resumes with the new year as they welcome in the Buffalo Bulls from the MAC. Buffalo has had a recent history of success with multiple NCAA tournament wins under coaches Bobby Hurley and Nate Oats. However, this year is clearly a rebuilding year with them holding a 6-6 record (2 against non-Division I opponents) and no notable wins.

Michigan State hopes to continue getting healthier as Jaden Akins returns more to full strength and Malik Hall is expected to play after being laid up for 3 weeks with a stress reaction to his foot. MSU's defense has suffered without Hall in the lineup and the hope is that he can get back up to full speed in a few weeks and perhaps put the Spartans' defense back in the top 30 again.

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December 27, 2022: The first commitment to MSU's 2023 class was PG Jeremy Fears Jr. from Joliet, Illinois. Fears is the #7 ranked point guard and #37 overall player according to On3 recruiting rankings for the 2023 class. After playing at LaLumiere Academy last year, Jeremy elected to return to his high school and play with his younger brother, Jeremiah, for what might be his last chance to play on the same team.

Jeremy discussed what the recruitment was like with MSU, why he picked the Spartans, what it was like playing on Team USA in international ball and much more in this interview.

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December 26, 2022: Coming into this season, there were uncertainties everywhere within the Big Ten teams. A lot of teams had almost complete turnovers from last year with incoming Now that we've had a few Big Ten games played and have watched most of the non-conference season we figured it would be helpful to look back at our predictions and handicap them.

Rod goes through the surprises from Nebraska to Indiana. He feels even better about his placement of Indiana at number one yet not winning the Big Ten. Also, what's going on in Champaign and Ann Arbor? All that and more in this episode.

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December 23, 2022: In a big thank you to our fans we held an ask me anything session where we answered questions about MSU, what happens when Izzo retires, what are the best basketball books, how do we pull together the show, and who exactly is in Rod's avatar photo.

This session and the success of the show are due entirely to how great our listeners are. If you want to support the show go to our website or rate and review the show on your podcast player.

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