An atrocious shooting performance from deep, minimal offense from key players and foul trouble for the top two point guards is not the blueprint for taking down a No. 1. Michigan State checked all of those boxes but still gave top-ranked Kansas a push before falling 77-69 on Tuesday night at the Champions Classic in Atlanta.

Tom Izzo opened and closed his press conference on Monday talking about other sports on campus. Women’s soccer was about to learn its NCAA Tournament draw, the hockey team is ranked in the top five and first-year football coach Jonathan Smith is attempting end a challenging season on a high note.