EAST LANSING — There is zero doubt Tom Izzo has a lot of work ahead of him as Michigan State basketball’s gauntlet schedule begins in less than two weeks.
Tuesday night’s exhibition showed just how thin the margin for error is for the Spartans’ leaner roster.
Division II Grand Valley State gave MSU fits for almost ¾ of the game until the Spartans pulled away in the second half to a 73-56 victory at Breslin Center.
Both starting guards A.J. Hoggard and Tyson Walker battled through in-game injury issues. Outside shots weren’t falling. And many of the issues Izzo mentioned being a problem in his team’s closed scrimmage at Tennessee — turnover and rebounding, particularly — along with dribble-drive defense kept the game close until MSU went on a 22-7 run over an 8½-minute stretch of the second half to pull away after trailing by as many as seven in the first half.