Spartan Tipoff: Wisconsin vs. No. 20 Michigan State

• When: 7 p.m. today

• Where: Breslin Center, East Lansing.

• Radio: WVFN 730-AM

• TV: None, but game will be on a pay-per-view stream at BigTenNetwork.com

• Records: MSU is 11-5, 2-3 Big Ten; Wisconsin is 13-4, 3-3.

• Coaches: MSU - Suzy Merchant is 56-30 in her third season at MSU and 257-150 overall in 15 seasons. Wisconsin - Lisa Stone is 104-96 in her seventh year with Wisconsin and 479-215 overall in 25 seasons.

• Series: MSU leads 34-24, but Wisconsin has won four of the past five meetings, including a 62-54 win on Dec. 28 in Madison, Wis.

• Last game: MSU lost Saturday at home to No. 6 Ohio State, 65-62. Wisconsin won Sunday at home over Michigan, 68-48.

• Projected lineups

MSU

Pos. Name PPG

G (20) Brittney Thomas (5-10) 6.5

G (32) Kalisha Keane (6-1) 9.1

F (30) Lykendra Johnson (6-1) 10.4

F (22) Aisha Jefferson (6-1) 7.8

C (41) Allyssa DeHaan (6-9) 12.8

Wisconsin

Pos. Name PPG

G (11) Rae Lin D'Alie (5-3) 7.8

G (13) Teah Gant (5-10) 5.6

G (30) Alyssa Karel (5-7) 14.4

F (4) Tara Steinbauer (6-1) 8.1

C (33) Lynn Zastrow (6-4) 7.8

• MSU update: Merchant continues to urge her team to be less complacent and more consistent, starting with midseason Wooden Award candidate DeHaan. Against Ohio State, she managed just four rebounds and wasn't much of an offensive presence down the stretch. "There are some people that need to step up individually, including myself ...," DeHaan said. "We're just waiting for people to do it, which is terrible." This time, too, DeHaan, Lauren Aitch and the post players will need to avoid dribbling in the post against Wisconsin's quick-handed defense. One area Merchant also deemed imperative against the Badgers is to get her guards to go to the rim more consistently, which could lead to added trips to the free-throw line. It was lacking early in the first meeting until some second-half lineup shuffling helped the Spartans overcome a 16-point deficit and have a chance toward the end. "The first time against Wisconsin, we didn't have any of that," she said. "Then we put Porsche (Poole) in, and she went off the bounce, and Jasmine (Thomas) went off the bounce and ignited us offensively and got them reeling a little bit." While the Spartans have struggled recently against Wisconsin, they have won five straight at Breslin over the Badgers.

• Wisconsin update: Like the Spartans, Wisconsin is a team battling inconsistency. The Badgers followed their big win over MSU by losing two in a row on the road at Iowa and Illinois, then winning two straight at home against Purdue and U-M. Against the Wolverines, freshman reserve guard Taylor Wurtz buried five 3-pointers and finished with game highs of 27 points and nine rebounds, a welcome scoring boost for defensively minded but offensively challenged Wisconsin. Wurtz averages nine points a game in Big Ten games, second on the team. "Taylor is no longer a freshman, there's no question. She's been a big spark for us all year," Stone said. One area the Badgers have maintained is their stifling defense - they are the best in the league and 11th nationally in allowing just 52.7 points a game. They also hold opponents to a Big Ten-low 30.8 rebounds.

• Prediction: This will be a feisty defensive game, but expect the Spartans to be more in attack mode with revenge in mind. They also know that 2-4 in the league could be a devastating hole to overcome for their postseason aspirations.

• Make it: MSU 61, Wisconsin 55

- Chris Solari