GAME NOTES: The Iowa Hawkeyes go in search of their third straight Big Ten Conference victory and their fourth overall, as they entertain the Michigan State Spartans on Thursday night.

Michigan State bounced back from its conference-opening loss to visiting Maryland (68-66 2OT) to throttle Indiana at home on Monday, 70-50. As a result, the Spartans improved to 10-5 on the season, which includes a 7-2 mark at home. MSU is 1-1 in true road games.

Iowa tipped off its Big Ten slate with a 71-65 win at nationally-ranked Ohio State, and followed that up with a 70-59 triumph over Nebraska at home on Monday as well. The Hawkeyes currently sit at 11-4 overall, and they've won nine of their 10 games played in Iowa City this season.

Michigan State owns a 70-53 lead in the all-time series with Iowa, and the Spartans have won the last eight meetings, and 13 of the last 14 overall.

Michigan State almost completely shut down Indiana earlier this week, allowing the Hoosiers to connect on only 28.3 percent of their field goal attempts, which included a dismal 5-of-24 effort from 3-point range. Conversely, the Spartans made good on 46.7 percent of their total shots, hitting a third of their 15 long-range launches. Denzel Valentine paced MSU with 15 points, while Branden Dawson logged a double-double consisting of 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Gavin Schilling nearly pulled off the same by tallying 10 points and nine boards. The Spartans easily won the rebounding battle, 50-28, and they got off to a fast start by holding IU to only five field goals in the opening period.

The Spartans are putting up 74.1 ppg thanks to a 40.1 percent showing from beyond the arc, and they boast four double-digit scorers in the form of Valentine (13.8 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 4.3 apg), Travis Trice (13.3 ppg, 6.0 apg), Dawson (10.9 ppg, 9.1 rpg) and Bryn Forbes (10.0 ppg). The team's defensive effort has been on par with some of the top teams in the Big Ten, as it yields 60.1 ppg with foes shooting just 36.8 percent from the field, including a mere 27.3 percent from beyond the arc. A sizable +8.3 rebounding margin has helped matters as well.

Iowa used an impressive 31-of-38 effort at the free-throw line to knock off Nebraska on Monday, as the team needed something to make up for its 38.6 percent shooting effort from the field. Aaron White paced the Hawkeyes with 23 points and nine rebounds, while Gabriel Olesani tacked on 18 points in combining with White to convert 24-of-28 foul shots. Jarrod Uthoff chipped in with 15 points and seven boards for Iowa, who made only 5-of-20 3-point shots, but held the Cornhuskers to just 2-of-14.

White and Uthoff rank one-two on Iowa's scoring chart for the season, netting 16.5 and 11..4 ppg, respectively, and they also serve as the team's top rebounds with a combined 14.1 rpg. The Hawkeyes generate 70.7 ppg despite knocking down just 40.9 percent of their field goal attempts, which includes a 30.8 percent performance from out on the perimeter, but its defensive effort has been top-notch, with foes shooting 37.8 percent from the floor, 29.1 percent from distance, and putting up only 59.3 ppg. Add favorable margins in both rebounding (+4.2) and turnovers (+2.2) and it's no wonder the team is off to such a solid start.

The Spartans are going to try and bully the Hawkeyes in close to the basket, but the home team isn't going to be intimidated, and should be able to muster up enough energy to earn its third straight conference win.