UCLA v. Michigan State Preview

The UCLA men’s basketball team returns to the court on Tuesday night when the Bruins travel to the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan to take on the host Michigan State Spartans (5:30 PM PST; Peacock).

Both teams were blown out in their last respective games, UCLA at Michigan and MSU at Wisconsin. The difference was in how both teams lost, with UCLA playing the Wolverines competitively for one half before getting steamrolled in the second half.  The Spartans went down early to Wisconsin and never could recover. The game was over by halftime (MSU trailed by 17) and probably represented the season’s nadir for head coach Tom Izzo and the Spartans.

This is a critical game for both teams because only one game separates them in the Big Ten Conference standings.  Michigan State is 10-4 in the Big Ten, while UCLA is 9-5.  However, the game looms a little larger for the Bruins as they try and force their way into the NCAA Tournament, which begins in roughly one month. The Bruins really haven’t played anything approaching a complete game against any top-tier competition this season. Will the Bruins finally be able to do that on Tuesday and in one of the toughest venues in the conference?