Michigan State Faces Historic West Coast Challenge in Big Ten Expansion

EAST LANSING, Mich. — For the first time in 30 years under head coach Tom Izzo, Michigan State basketball is heading to Los Angeles for a regular-season game. The Spartans will face USC at 4:30 p.m. EST Saturday and UCLA at 10 p.m. Tuesday, marking their first trip to the West Coast as part of the Big Ten‘s expanded conference footprint. Both games will be streamed exclusively on Peacock.

“I’ve gotten calls on, ‘How are you going to handle it?’ How can I handle something I haven’t done before?” Izzo said Monday. “You’re just giving somebody a lot of BS because you really aren’t sure. And then coming back, they say it’s more difficult. And of course, we got that quick turnaround with Oregon. So we’ve got some challenges in front of us.”

Michigan State enters the weekend with an 18-2 overall record and a perfect 9-0 start in Big Ten play, their best since the 2018-19 season when they reached the Final Four. The Spartans are also 4-0 on the road in conference play, including a victory at Madison Square Garden. A win in either game would push Izzo closer to surpassing Bobby Knight’s record of 353 Big Ten wins.

Guard Jase Richardson credited the team’s focus for their strong start. “We homed in and we won the games that we need,” Richardson said Tuesday. “We still got a stretch of games that are gonna be pretty tough for us, but we need to dial in defensively, offensively and get the wins.”

The Spartans’ first opponent, USC (12-8, 4-5 Big Ten), is led by first-year coach Eric Musselman. The Trojans rely on four players averaging double-digit points, with guard Desmond Claude leading the team at 16.1 points per game. Despite a middling record, USC has faced a tough conference schedule, including losses to Michigan and Indiana and a win over Illinois.

UCLA (16-6, 7-4) presents a stiffer challenge. The Bruins, under coach Mick Cronin, boast a top-50 offense and a defense on par with Michigan State’s. UCLA is riding a five-game win streak, including victories over ranked opponents Wisconsin and Oregon.

Michigan State’s trip to Los Angeles is not just a test of skill but also of endurance. The Spartans will travel 2,000 miles and spend nearly a week on the road, a logistical hurdle that could impact performance. “It’s a unique challenge,” Izzo acknowledged. “But this team has shown they can handle adversity.”

Tipoff for the USC game is set for 4:30 p.m. Saturday at the Galen Center in Los Angeles. The Spartans lead the all-time series against USC 4-3, with their last meeting resulting in a 72-62 win in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.