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Michigan State basketball vs. Notre Dame: Five things to watch

EAST LANSING — Here are five things to watch when No. 3 Michigan State hosts No. 5 Notre Dame at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge:

Long time coming

The MSU-Notre Dame rivalry is one of historic importance that has disappeared over the past 40 years. The two Midwest powers have met 95 times but just once since their 1979 NCAA tournament game, won by Magic Johnson and the Spartans en route to the national championship. The only meeting since came Dec. 3, 2014 as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, with Notre Dame squeaking out a 79-78 overtime win in South Bend.