Just two and a half weeks ago, No. 19 Michigan State (20-5, 8-4 Big Ten) was rolling through foes with 19 wins in 21 games, and sophomore forward Raymar Morgan was a consistent threat for a double-double.
But the Spartans have fallen on tough times recently, losing three of their last four games -- all on the road.
One of the main reasons for the struggles is the inconsistency of Morgan, who's averaged 15.1 points per game and 6.5 rebounds a game. In those three recent losses, he scored only 26 points combined. In fact, Morgan has not scored more than 20 points since a win at Northwestern on Jan. 24.
"He just hasn't played like the key player he is. I don't know if hype or the other things got to him a little bit," Spartans coach Tom Izzo said.
"But he's been just kind of a shell of what he was the first 15, 16 games."
Turn of Fortune
After losing 17 of its first 22 games, Michigan was in a tailspin.
With new head coach John Beilein implementing his systems, it took some time for the Wolverines (8-17, 4-9) to get adjusted.
But Michigan's season is starting to turn around, as the win against rival Ohio State on Sunday leaves Michigan on a season-high three-game winning streak heading into this week's Big Ten games.
A key factor for the improvement is the offensive output. In the second half at Iowa last week, Michigan scored 44 points to erase an 11-point halftime deficit. And the 80 points against the Buckeyes was the most since the Wolverines scored 103 points against Oakland (Mich.) on Dec. 12.
Along with scoring more points, the defense is playing with more confidence because it hasn't been on its heels on transition. And with eight underclassmen on the roster, the learning period from the beginning of the season may be over.
"It takes, to teach man-to-man defense, it does take a lot of time because every team's different." Beilein said.
"Doing the little things, that's probably the biggest struggle with inexperienced teams is just teaching them how to sustain good defense."
Butch's emergence
Although Purdue is the surprise in the Big Ten, No. 11 Wisconsin's success in what was supposed to be a rebuilding year has been a shock as well.
Despite losing their two top scorers from last season, the Badgers (21-4, 11-2) only average 1.5 fewer points a game as a team this year.
Three players average at least 11 points and six score more than 7.6 points.
The main cog in the offense has been senior center Brian Butch, who leads the team in scoring average (12.6 ppg) and rebounds (7.0 rpg).
But the real surprise is Butch's improvement from beyond the arc.
After making just three 3-pointers in the first 18 games, Butch has hit 10 3s in the last seven games, thus making it tougher for opposing defenses to prepare for Wisconsin's offense, and Butch's shooting
Butch was a primarily a post player before making more of a commitment to his perimeter game.
"[It's] just another year of experience," Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan said.
"In coaching, we all learn something from the year we just had. Players do the same thing. It's a matter of putting that knowledge to use. ... He just keeps rolling."
"But he's been just kind of a shell of what he was the first 15, 16 games."
Turn of Fortune
After losing 17 of its first 22 games, Michigan was in a tailspin.
