Denzel Valentine shines again as Spartans end Wisconsin win streak

Michigan State fans chanted “MVP..MVP..MVP” on Thursday night as Denzel Valentine stood dribbling the ball with more than a minute to play in the Spartans’ 69-57 victory over Wisconsin.

Valentine eventually forced up a wild, spinning shot that missed badly to avoid a shot clock violation. It wasn’t the pretty ending his performance deserved and seconds later coach Tom Izzo subbed in the reserves.

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But less than 30 seconds later after those reserves committed two turnovers allowing easy points to the Badgers, Izzo put Valentine back in the game and he closed with two made free throws and a short jumper to finish his night with 24 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.

It’s nights like these when it’s hard to argue Valentine doesn’t belong in the discussion for national player of the year.

Going into Thursday’s contest, the Spartans were ranked No. 8 in the nation despite being eight places down in the standings in the Big Ten. A tough stretch from late-December to mid-January in which they lost four games withValentine either out of the lineup or not 100 percent accounts for their place in the Big Ten pecking order. But they have ample opportunity to improve where they stand in the conference over the final two weeks of the regular season with a manageable schedule, featuring two games against Ohio State.  

When he is healthy and at his best, Valentine is tough to handle and so is Michigan State. The Spartans can make a capable team like Wisconsin look bad, which is what happened Thursday.

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Valentine and his teammates had much more energy from the start and raced to a 14-3 lead. Wisconsin was in catch-up mode from there and never mustered the energy to get the job done watching its seven-game winning streak fall by the wayside.

Valentine’s performance stood in contrast to Wisconsin forward Nigel Hayes who scored a season-low five points in what was an opportunity for the kind of victory that could have put the Badgers’ NCAA tournament hopes over the top. Hayes seemed to lack energy and a commitment to defend all night and Michigan State was happy to take advantage.

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[Kyle Ringo is the assistant editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo