Spartan Hoopla: Michigan State's Loss to Buckeyes May Have Cost Them

Eleventh-ranked Michigan State's (11-4, 21-7) 74-67 loss to the 12th-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes (11-4, 21-7) was more than a just a loss, it may have cost Tom Izzo's Spartans a league title.

Thad Matta's club killed two birds with one stone Sunday. The first "bird" was knocking Sparty from first place in the Big Ten for the first time since 2008. The other "bird" was delivering the Spartans a loss at the Breslin Center, something that just doesn't happen too often.

With the loss, the Spartans are in a two-way tie with the Buckeyes for the second spot in the league. Matt Painter's fourth-ranked Purdue Boilermakers now sit alone atop the Big Ten standings with a slim half-game advantage (11-3, 22-3).

Dropping the crucial league match at home may have just cost Sparty its sixth title under coach Izzo. With just three games left on its menu, the Izzo clan no longer has room for error.

The Spartans played with little to no intensity in the first half, facing a double-digit deficit for the majority of the first 20 minutes.

The second half was a different ball game.

Sparty played with heart, pounding the boards and working in the paint. Those facets of the game are what have made Michigan State so successful in the past. Tough play and rebounding will continue to be the team's bread and butter come March.

Chris Allen, Raymar Morgan, and Kalin Lucas all did their part when it came to monitoring Matta's 6'7", dynamo Evan Turner. Turner was held to just four points in the first stanza due to tight defense and lack of touch on his attempts.

Turner's second frame was the difference maker for the Buckeyes, along with the timely stroke of John Diebler's deep ball. Diebler hit a key three in the waning minutes which was the boost Matta's men needed. National Player of the Year candidate Turner finished with a game-high 20 points (16 in second half), Deibler with 12.

Durrell Summers led Michigan State with 16 points, compensating for a cold shooting day by the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, Lucas. Lucas finished with just nine points. Sunday marked the second time in his last 38 games that he's failed to tally double-digits in the scoring column.

A conference championship isn't out of reach for Izzo's bunch, it's just going to be a little harder to obtain after its recent setback.

Going to Purdue's Mackey Arena on Feb. 28 will likely decide the Big Ten's current log-jam for first place.

If there is a positive that MSU can take away from its loss, it's this: The Spartans proved that they can dig themselves out of a hole to an elite team, and that they are once again capable of being physical in the paint.

Draymond Green, Raymar Morgan, and Delvon Roe were all tough in the lane on Sunday. They will have to continue that type of play if the Spartans want to go deep into March where they'll face a plethora of teams with legitimate big men.

Morgan finished with a team-high 14 boards and scored nine points in one of his better showings this season.

With just six halves of Big Ten basketball remaining, topping the Boilers in Mackey becomes a must.