After edging host Penn State in its Big Ten opener, ninth-ranked Michigan State will return home Tuesday night for a nonconference matchup against Toledo in East Lansing, Mich.
Plagued by a season-high 17 turnovers versus the Nittany Lions, the Spartans persevered behind Divine Ugochukwu’s career-best 23 points and Jaxon Kohler’s fifth double-double this season. Kohler contributed 10 points and 12 rebounds.
“The only thing I’m proud of my guys is, I don’t think we played well … but we did find a way in the end,” Spartans coach Tom Izzo said. “And good teams have to find a way to win.”
Michigan State (9-1) will aim to keep building confidence after a narrow victory in the team’s first action since a Dec. 6 loss to then-No. 4 Duke.
A Big Ten break that also includes a neutral-court game against Oakland and a visit from Cornell offers the Spartans a chance to work on a recent lineup adjustment.
Izzo favored Ugochukwu at the 2-guard position more often against Penn State, which created more opportunities to open the floor with Denham Wojcik at point guard.
Ugochukwu capitalized, shooting 8-for-10 from the field and 5-for-5 from 3-point range. To Izzo, though, the shift benefits the rotation as a whole.
“We’re gonna play Denham some because we have some consistency then,” Izzo said. “Divine this week, we put him at the 2 and said, ‘Learn it. Get comfortable with it.’ We got a couple other guys that play a lot better. A couple were starters, a couple were subs that’ve been starters.”
As with Michigan State, Toledo (5-5) played a two-possession road game against a Pennsylvania school on Saturday. The Rockets, however, would like a do-over for their 75-70 loss to Robert Morris after squandering an 18-point halftime advantage and leading by as many as 21.
Toledo coach Tod Kowalczyk bemoaned the team’s inconsistency not just from the floor — the Rockets shot 48.4% in the first half compared to 17.2% in the second — but defensively and mentally.
“We let our lack of success on the offensive end affect our defensive energy and we started getting frustrated,” he said.
Sonny Wilson paced the Rockets with 21 points while Sean Craig (15 points) and Austin Parks (13) followed in double figures. Wilson is Toledo’s top scorer at 16.8 points a game, with fellow guard Leroy Blyden Jr. next at 14.0.
Wilson, a junior, and Blyden, a freshman, have made the most of their reunion so far; the duo played for one season together at University of Detroit Jesuit High School.
“Toledo gave me opportunities since day one to play 30 minutes and start,” Wilson said, “so I knew they’d do the same for him if he came here and competed right away.”
Blyden praised Wilson’s leadership and guidance off the court for helping him adapt.
“Our two different playing styles complement each other because we can both stay on the court,” Blyden said, “and it’s hard for the defense to guard two different types of guards at the same time.”
Kowalczyk is 0-5 against Michigan State in his career.
–Field Level Media
