More than ever at stake in Michigan-Michigan State

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It might not create the same buzz as its football counterpart, but after 182 matchups, Michigan-Michigan State basketball rivalry renews this Saturday night in East Lansing to close out the regular season.

And with the Big Ten regular-season championship on the line.

That's never happened in the rivalry -- the title at stake on the final day of the season.

But No. 7 Michigan and No. 9 Michigan State are tied atop the Big Ten standings as they prepare for the 8 p.m. ET tip-off. The winner will get at least a share of the conference regular-season championship and the No. 1 seed in next week's conference tournament. If Purdue loses earlier on Saturday to Northwestern, the winner is the outright champion.

It's only the fourth time the teams have met while both are in the top 10. The third time was just two weeks ago when Michigan State beat Michigan 77-70 in Ann Arbor. With so much on the line, Michigan State coach Tom Izzo believes this might be the biggest game in the history of the Breslin Center, which became the Spartans' home in the 1989-90 season.

"There have been a lot of big games here, a lot I've enjoyed," Izzo said. "But when you look at those things -- the rivalry, both teams in the top 10, playing for a championship with seeding implications for the Big Ten tournament, seeding implications for the NCAA Tournament, national television.

"All those things, I'd say yeah. That's the way it's supposed to be."

The rivalry has always been big for Izzo, now in his 24th season leading Michigan State. He's won eight Big Ten championships in that time and would love to get No. 9.

For Michigan's John Beilein, though, the excitement is a bit tempered. While Izzo sees their game close to the same level as Duke-North Carolina, Beilein is more concerned about what the win would mean, regardless of the opponent.

"This is great and whoever wins this game will be champions," Beilein said. "This is a championship we want to win, but I am not going to put it as the greatest game of all time. It will be a great game between two storied programs."

He's right about that part. The success of the programs has finally been on even ground for the better part of the last 10 years, thanks in large part to Beilein's arrival. He's taken the Wolverines to a pair of national title games, including last season, and until the loss two weeks ago, had won three in a row over the Spartans.

Who gets the upper hand this time will depend largely on health. Michigan has been without guard Charles Matthews the last two games and Beilein said the junior will go through warm-ups on Saturday before a decision is made.

Michigan State, already without Joshua Langford for the season, is hoping to get back junior center Nick Ward, who has missed four games with a broken hand. They're also counting on the return of junior wing Kyle Ahrens, who sat out Tuesday's win over Nebraska with a back injury.

Regardless of who steps on the court, the impact of the game won't change.

"If you're not up for this game you got a problem," Michigan State junior guard Cassius Winston said. "Championship, against your rival, Senior Night. We'd be up for the game if we didn't win any games all year or won all our games all year. That's how we treat seniors here. We try to send them out the best way possible and now the best way possible is to win a championship and that just adds fuel to the fire."

--Field Level Media