The Iowa Hawkeyes are at home tonight against 16th ranked Michigan State and need a victory to retain the Big Ten lead. It was all Michigan State in the first matchup as the Spartans rolled past the Hawkeyes 85-55.
Iowa coach Steve Alford says Michigan State “put a hurting on us” as he says they did everything right and his team didn’t do much right. Alford says rebounding and preventing easy baskets are the keys against the Spartans. He says they’re as good in transition as anybody in the country. Alford says they have to do a better job of transition defense, and says they didn’t turn it over a lot, but took lots of bad shots.
The Spartans are 6-4 in the Big Ten and need a victory to stay in the title chase. Alford says the Hawkeyes also have a sense of urgency. He says anytime you’re on top, you have to win, and he says both teams have some big games ahead. Alford says he’s glad it’s at home and hopefully they can even the series up.
Alford says the Hawkeyes need a complete effort, as he says they don’t have a big margin for error against the Spartans if they want to win.
Iowa is 19-6 overall.