Michigan State starts their march toward the Big Ten title on Friday. The top-seeded Spartans will take on the No. 8 Iowa Hawkeyes, which beat Illinois on Thursday in their first Big Ten tournament win since 2006.
The game starts at noon ET on Friday, March 9, at the Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN.
Currently, Joe Lunardi at ESPN has the Spartans as a second seed in the Midwest Regional of the 2012 NCAA tournament. In SB Nation's latest Bracketology update, Michigan State is projected as a second seed in the West Regional.
Iowa does not make an appearance in either bracket prediction. The Hawkeyes may be a tough sell as a bubble team without a win over Michigan State, which would surely be counted among the bigger upsets of March Madness so far. If Iowa did win that game, Michigan State's tournament bid would be secure, but a second seed would likely be out of reach.
Make sure to check out our StoryStream for more on the action in Indy, and you can also check out the 2012 Big Ten tournament bracket.
For more on the Big Ten, be sure to visit SB Nation's BT Powerhouse. Get complete Iowa coverage at Black Heart Gold Pants. Full Michigan State coverage can be found at The Only Colors. You should also check out SB Nation's main NCAA Basketball hub at SBNation.com/NCAA-Basketball.