Michigan State guard Kur Teng (2) dribbles against Indiana guard Conor Enright (5) during the second half at Breslin Center in East Lansing on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Preview: MSU Basketball Take On Washington

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Jacob Cotsonika | Last updated Jan 17, 2026 12:00 PM ET

Ah yes, the classic Big Ten matchup between Michigan State and Washington.

It still takes some getting used to. MSU hasn't faced the Huskies in Seattle since December of 1957. Alas, this is the new normal, and this is the first game of two for the Spartans on the West Coast. Michigan State will face Oregon on Tuesday as well before returning to East Lansing.

The Spartans enter their game against UW ranked 12th in the country, 15-2 overall, and 5-1 during Big Ten play. Washington is unranked at 10-7 and 2-4, respectively. The Huskies are 57th in the NET rankings, though, making this a Quad 1 opportunity for Michigan State.

Here is how MSU fans can check out Saturday's showdown taking place on the West Coast:

TV Info

Tip-Off: 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT/local)

Channel: Big Ten Network

Announcers: Aaron Goldsmith (play-by-play); Don MacLean (color analyst)

Radio Info - Spartan Media Network

Lansing: WMMQ (94.9 FM), WJIM (1240 AM)

Detroit: WJR (760 AM)

Grand Rapids: WBFX (101.3 FM)

Other radio stations from around the state of Michigan can be found RIGHT HERE.

SiriusXM: Channels 113 or 195 or on the SiriusXM app.

Announcers: Will Tieman (play-by-play); Matt Steigenga (color analyst); Zach Surdenik (host)

More on the Huskies

Marc Lebryk-Imagn Images

This matchup was not close at all last year. Michigan State completely overwhelmed Washington in East Lansing back on Jan. 9, 2025, dominating from the opening tip en route to an 88-54 victory that, honestly, could have been even more lopsided.

The Huskies look much, much different this year. Second-year head coach Danny Sprinkle overhauled his roster through the transfer portal and with his incoming recruiting class. It has not really worked, as UW has an identical overall record through 17 games as it did last season. Washington finished 13-18 overall and dead last in the Big Ten by two games at 4-16 during its first season in the conference.

In total, 14 of the Huskies' 16 rostered players were not on the team last season. Even though the big wins haven't followed, UW has more than enough talent to challenge Michigan State.

The first player to know is the German freshman Hannes Steinbach, a 6-foot-11 forward who scores 17.9 points per game and leads the Big Ten at 11.2 rebounds per game. Washington's top backcourt option is Zoom Diallo, one of the two returners from last year, who averages 14.9 points per game.