Michigan State basketball hosts Quinnipiac in their season-opener on Monday night -- so will they handle business and start the season off with a victory? I believe that'll be the case...
Michigan State will officially open the 2026-27 season on Monday night in a home game against Quinnipiac of the Metro Conference. The Spartans come into this matchup as a preseason top 10 team nationally and as a near 30-point favorite over the Bobcats.
Michigan State returns a number of key players off last year's squad that reached the Sweet 16. The Spartans are No. 6 nationally in both the preseason media and coaches poll. Quinnipiac is looking to finish above .500 for a fifth straight season, with the Bobcats picked to finish in the middle of the pack in the Metro
Conference preseason poll.
Tipoff from the Breslin Center is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on Monday. The game will be available to stream via Big Ten Plus.
Here is my score prediction and analysis for how I believe this game will play out:
Prediction
Score: Michigan State 83, Quinnipiac 60
It's hard to know what you'll be getting from both of these teams with it being the season-opener, but after a pair of rough showings to end exhibition play, I'm expecting a better outing from Michigan State. The motivation to play better and start to show why they're a preseason top 10 team will be on full force on Monday.
Quinnipiac has the ability to make this game interesting, and that's what I'm anticipating for at least the first half. But eventually their rebound-and-run style of play will simply not be able to keep up with the more talented Spartans. The Bobcats cover the massive 30-point line but this game is in hand for Michigan State for most of the way in the second half.
Michigan State improves to 1-0 on the season, with an intriguing test coming up later this week against Toledo.
Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Michigan State basketball vs. Quinnipiac: Score prediction, analysis
