By: Doug Lesmerises (Cleveland Plain Dealer) —
Indianapolis – Michigan State’s eighth trip in the past 12 years to the Sweet 16 – second only to Duke in that stretch – was given a kick in the calf-length shorts by Ohio State.

The Buckeyes’ semifinal win over the Spartans in the Big Ten Tournament two weeks ago, Michigan State’s first loss in six weeks, put a fine point on the worries men’s basketball coach Tom Izzo had been harboring about his Big Ten regular-season champs.

Senior Goran Suton said the Spartans just didn’t “click” in that game, and Izzo was left shaking his head buying medicine online in the locker room afterwards.
“I don’t wish we lost,” MSU sophomore Durrell Summers said before the Spartans faced Kansas on Friday night at Lucas Oil Stadium, “but I think that loss kind of helped this team. It made us realize some things we needed to change. I think we learned from that loss 100 percent.”

Izzo never advocates rest before the NCAA Tournament, and he does not subscribe to the theory that a long run in a conference tournament creates problems for the NCAA event. The Spartans’ national title in 2000 followed a Big Ten Tournament title.

But when you’re pushing the need for better shots and more aggressive defense – coupled with a general feel that the …….
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