Coming off the break, the Michigan State men's basketball team complied perhaps its most complete effort to date in a 74-56 victory over Nebraska on Tuesday. If not the Spartans' most complete game, MSU showcased its best start of the season, taking a 39-17 lead into half against the Cornhuskers.

The Huskers attempted to creep back into the game in the second half, but MSU kept pace comfortably to earn its fifth-straight victory, and second Big Ten win of the year, heading into a rivalry matchup with Michigan on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time.

Nothing signals the dog days of the Big Ten winter like the turn of the new year and a home date with Michigan. The Spartans (10-4, 2-1 Big Ten) prepare to take on a Wolverines team (9-5, 3-0 Big Ten) seemingly regaining form after a lackluster start.

Michigan does not have a marquee win on the season, but has come close against Virginia (70-68), Kentucky (73-69) and North Carolina (80-76). More notably, Juwan Howard’s squad suffered a 63-61 home loss to Central Michigan, from which they bounced back emphatically with a 81-46 rout of Maryland and a ten-point victory over Penn State at the Crisler Center.

Paint Battle

Fortunately or not for Michigan State, the focal point of Saturday’s contest will likely be embedded in the paint.

Michigan center Hunter Dickinson is averaging 18.7 points and 8.3 rebounds this season. The junior big man had 23 points in Michigan’s road loss to MSU last year, but dominated the Wolverine’s revenge effort at home with 33 points in a contest that felt out of reach for MSU from the opening tip.

Michigan State attempted to throw junior center Mady Sissoko at Dickinson when it was already out of reach last season, where he did hold his own, going 3-of-3 from the field with three rebounds in 12 minutes.

This will be the Mali native’s toughest matchup since facing Kentucky’s Oscar Tshiebwe in the Champion’s Classic, a game in which Sissoko went toe-to-toe with the reigning National Player of the Year. While Sissoko scored 16 points to Tshiebwe’s 22 and grabbed eight boards to his 18, Sissoko outlasted Tshiebwe in a thrilling overtime victory, making plays at both ends of the floor in an effort few would’ve expected a year ago.

At the Armed Forced Classic, Sissoko led the Spartans in each category with 14 points and nine rebounds. Sissoko displayed a gutsy effort against Gonzaga’s All-American forward Drew Timme, who did finish with 22 points in a victory, but the Michigan State center’s progress in the offseason was apparent.

From his last tilt with Dickinson to his display against Tshiebwe, Sissoko showed once-unfathomable improvements in defensive presence and footwork and the ability to keep pace with the nation’s best big men. Since the Champion’s Classic, Sissoko has resorted to his former self somewhat, though still much-improved compared to his previous two seasons. He is averaging just 6.6 points and 6.8 rebounds on the year coming into Saturday's game.

Dickinson leads Michigan with the aforementioned 18.7 points per game and has since bolstered other elements of his game, shooting 38% from 3-point range, the highest among Wolverine starters. Maybe a similarly daunting matchup will bring a similar performance out of Sissoko, an effort the Spartans will likely need to get a win on Saturday.

Perimeter Play

Jett Howard, one of the two sons of head coach Juwan Howard on Michigan's roster this season, will provide a challenge for MSU’s perimeter that has looked stronger by the game. Juwan Howard’s youngest son ranks second on the team, averaging 14.6 points on 37% shooting from 3-point land.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo resorted to starting three guards (Tyson Walker, A.J. Hoggard and Jaden Akins) in Malik Hall’s absence (and has stuck with that since Hall's return thus far), giving the Spartans versatility in guarding the perimeter.

Walker leads the Spartans with 13.9 points per game, while Akins has blossomed in his increased role, notably climbing to second-best on the team in 3-point shooting at 42%.

Joey Baker sports the best percentage for Michigan with 48.6% from deep off of the bench. The Duke transfer scored 11 points in his last game at the Breslin center, an 87-75 victory on Dec. 3, 2019 in which Duke avenged its Elite Eight loss to MSU.

Michigan leads the all-time series 98-67.

MSU exacted the largest margin of victory in its infamous 114-63 victory in 2000.

The Spartans completed a miraculous three-game sweep of Michigan in the 2019 Big Ten Championship in Izzo’s final tilt with John Beilein before splitting the home-and-home in each Juwan Howard’s first three seasons. The home team has been the victor in the last six meetings, all of which have been lopsided affairs, with a 14-point average margin of victory over that stretch.

Izzo is well aware of how important "winning the battle of the state" is for him personally and for Michigan State as a program.

With the Spartans hitting a stride in its last five games, and receiving necessary reinforcements in the front court with the return of Hall, I’d expect the series trend to continue.

Hall’s continued improvement following his return from a foot injury will prove vital in MSU’s attempt to mitigate Michigan’s front-court strength, and the Spartans pull away for a solid home victory.