Michigan State vs Ohio State Odds, Lines, and Spread

• Ohio State is a 7.5-point favorite at home over Michigan State on Sunday in Big Ten play
• Michigan State is coming off a 67-37 loss at Rutgers following a 20-day break because of COVID-19 protocols
• Odds, lines and spreads for Michigan State-Ohio State can be found below with analysis

Coming off an awful performance following a long break, Michigan State tries to get on track when it visits Ohio State at 1pm ET Sunday at Value City Arena in Columbus.

Michigan State was hammered 67-37 at Rutgers on Thursday night as a 4-point underdog in its first game since Jan. 8 because of a COVID-19 outbreak within the program. The loss dropped the Spartans to 8-5 overall and 2-5 in the Big Ten, a sharp fall for a team ranked #4 in the Associated Press media poll in mid-December.

Conversely, #13 Ohio State (13-4, 7-4) has won five of its last six games and is favored to win again Sunday.

Michigan State vs Ohio State Odds

Odds taken Jan. 30 from FanDuel

Ugly MSU Performance

The rust of a nearly three-week layoff showed early for Michigan State as it fell behind 15-0.

Michigan State cut its deficit to 26-20 by halftime. However, Rutgers opened the second half with an 11-2 run and outscored the Spartans 41-17 over the final 20 minutes.

Great 30 point win for The Rutgers Scarlet Knights over Michigan State!!! pic.twitter.com/SkcFl8bDPA

— Courtney McAnuff, (@McAnuffCourtney) January 29, 2021

No Michigan State player scored more than seven points, which was junior forward Aaron Henry’s team-leading figure.

Michigan State had 21 turnovers and shot 29%, connecting on 16-of-56 field goal attempts. Rather amazingly, that was just the Spartans’ second-worst shooting performance of the season, as they connected on 26% in an 81-56 loss at Minnesota on Dec. 28.

Junior forward Gabe Brown was one of the three players unavailable Thursday because of coronavirus protocols. He is averaging 7.5 points a game this season. Brown’s status for Sunday is uncertain.

Aaron Henry's just showing off now. 👀@hennny11// @MSU_Basketball pic.twitter.com/70Mynsqtdg

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) January 3, 2021

Henry continues to shine in a frustrating season for Michigan State as he is averaging 13.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocked shots.

Junior forward Joey Hauser is scoring 11.3 points and grabbing 7.5 rebounds a game.

Liddell Has Ohio State Rolling

E.J. Liddell scored a team-high 22 points and made four free throws in the final minute as Ohio State slipped past visiting Penn State 83-79 on Wednesday night as a 7-point favorite.

The sophomore forward broke a 76-76 tie with a pair of foul shots with 59 seconds left. He then sealed the win by making two more shots from line with one second remaining.

Liddell is averaging 15.0 points and 6.8 rebounds a game, which are both team-high figures. He is also drawing 6.2 fouls per 40 minutes.

This is an E.J. Liddell appreciation tweet. 👏@EasyE2432 // @OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/gGJECssd3V

— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) January 23, 2021

Junior forward Justin Sueing had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds. He has season averages of 10.5 points and 5.3 rebounds.

Freshmen forward Zed Key and junior guard Kyle Young both had perfect shooting nights. Key made all five field goal attempts and his lone free throw try for 11 points. Young scored 10 points on 3-of-3 from the field 1-for-1 from the foul line before fouling out with 5:01 to go.

This is an E.J. Liddell appreciation tweet. 👏@EasyE2432 // @OhioStateHoops pic.twitter.com/gGJECssd3V

— Ohio State on BTN (@OhioStateOnBTN) January 23, 2021

That helped compensate for junior guard Duane Washington Jr. managing just eight points on 2-of-11 shooting. Washington is second on the team with a 14.9 scoring average and has an 89.7% free throw percentage.

Ohio State led by as many as 12 points in the first half but fell behind by eight with eight minutes left before rallying. The Buckeyes overcame a season-high 17 points that led to 23 points for Penn State.

Tide Will Turn

Michigan State has beaten Ohio State four straight times, including 80-69 at East Lansing last season as a 6.5-point favorite.

Henry had 12 points for the Spartans. Washington scored 16 points in a losing effort and Liddell added 12.

Look for Ohio State to snap that skid against a reeling Michigan State team that has been one of the least profitable in college basketball this season with nine losses against the spread in its last 10 games.

Pick: Ohio State -7.5 (-112)