Prediction: Michigan St Spartans VS Penn State Nittany Lions 2025-12-13
Michigan State Spartans vs. Penn State Nittany Lions: A Tale of Three-Pointers, Rebounds, and Embarrassing Defeats
The Michigan State Spartans (8-1, 1-0 Big Ten) and Penn State Nittany Lions (8-2, 0-1 Big Ten) collide on Saturday in a matchup that’s as lopsided on paper as a deflated basketball. Let’s break it down with the precision of a stat head and the humor of a coach whose team just lost to a community college.
Parsing the Odds: Why This Feels Like a Foregone Conclusion
Michigan State is a -13.5-point favorite (per FanDuel), with moneyline odds hovering around +110 (implied probability: ~52.5%). Penn State, meanwhile, is a +7.0 to +7.8 underdog (implied probability: ~12.2% to 13.5%). These numbers scream “chalk,” louder than Tom Izzo’s postgame speeches. The total is set at 144.5 points, with even money on Over/Under—so while MSU’s defense might keep this game from exploding, Penn State’s offense could still make it a track meet.
Key stats? Michigan State’s elite rebounding (10th/11th in offensive/defensive rebounding%) and top-10 defensive efficiency will clash with Penn State’s 215th-ranked defense, which got drilled for 113 points by Indiana. The Spartans also hold opponents to 29% from three, while Penn State’s shooters (37% from deep) face a wall of Tom Izzo’s “defensive discipline.”
Team News: Injuries, Embarrassments, and a New Football Coach
Michigan State enters with full health, thanks to freshman Cam Ward practicing all week. Their lone blemish? A 66-60 home loss to Duke, where Carson Cooper scored 16 but the Spartans managed just 6.8 threes per game (278th in college basketball). Imagine trying to win with less three-point shooting than a high school team—MSU’s offense is like a chef who forgot to bring salt.
Penn State, meanwhile, is reeling from a 113-72 loss to Indiana that head coach Mike Rhoades called “embarrassing.” The Nittany Lions allowed 17 threes to the Hoosiers, including a career-high 44 from Lamar Wilkerson. Freshman star Kayden Mingo (15.4 PPG) led Penn State with 19 points in that disaster, but even his efforts feel like a lone lifeboat in a tsunami.
The bright side? Penn State’s new football coach, Matt Campbell, was introduced this week. Let’s hope his energy rubs off on the basketball team—though if history teaches us anything, it’s that a new coach’s pep talk can’t fix a defense that looks like it’s made of Jell-O.
The Humor: Puns, Analogies, and a Dash of Schadenfreude
Penn State’s defense is so porous, they’d let a free-throw line shooter score 74 points. Their Big Ten opener against Indiana wasn’t a game—it was a math lesson: 17 threes + zero defensive adjustments = 113 points. If Indiana’s offense were a restaurant, it’d get five stars. If Penn State’s defense were a restaurant, it’d be that one place that “accidentally” undercooked your steak.
Michigan State’s three-point shooting? It’s like a veteran waiter at a three-star restaurant who still can’t figure out how to open a ketchup packet. But hey, Tom Izzo’s teams win with grit, rebounding, and not turning the ball over—skills that don’t require a three-point shot any more than a shovel requires a PhD.
And let’s not forget the spread of -13.5. That’s the basketball equivalent of telling a tortoise and snail to race, then betting on the tortoise to win by 13 inches.
Prediction: Why the Spartans Will Win, Unless They Trip Over Their Own Shoelaces
Michigan State’s elite defense, dominant rebounding, and experience (Tom Izzo’s 31st season!) make them the clear choice. Penn State’s soft defense and inability to stop hot shooters? They’re a recipe for a 144.5-point game… if MSU’s offense ever wakes up.
Final Score Prediction: Michigan State 78, Penn State 66.
Why? Because MSU’s defense will stifle Penn State’s offense like a parent cutting off a kid’s screen time, and Penn State’s defense will crumble like a house of cards in a hurricane. Plus, the odds aren’t lying—unless you paid DraftKings to rig this game, in which case, I’m calling the cops.
Where to Bet: Fubo for the game, Vivid Seats for tickets (though you’ll need a time machine to get a good seat at this point).
Verdict: This isn’t a game—it’s a clinical study on how to lose to a top-10 team. Penn State, we hardly knew ye.
Created: Dec. 13, 2025, 6:57 a.m. GMT