March Madness is underway, people.

Illinois declared that loud and clear with a 53-46 stunner over No. 18 Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich., on Saturday.

Maybe all Illinois needed this season was for everyone to get going at the right time. Against Michigan State on Saturday, Illinois showed what it could do on full blast.

This is the team John Groce has been waiting for all season. Players stepped up on both ends of the floor and didn’t take their foot off the pedal for 40 minutes.

Abrams showed the on-court leadership of which he’s capable. He played some inspiring basketball against Michigan State. The junior has gone through a season-long slump, failing to score a field goal in three of his previous five games, but Abrams put it all together Saturday. The point guard led Illinois with 12 points, four assists and five steals in one of the best individual efforts from an Illini player this season.

Abrams kept his composure throughout the game, even when Michigan State ended the first half on a 19-7 run. He effectively ran the offense, penetrated at will and started showing a confidence he has lacked this season. He competed on the defensive end, disrupting passing lanes, running up and down the floor, and dogging any Spartans player he guarded. Abrams played some old school, in-your-face basketball and the rest of his team followed.

The freshman duo of Malcolm Hill and Kendrick Nunn stepped up again — what’s new? Hill had an efficient 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting from the field while Nunn contributed eight points, six rebounds, four assists and two 3-pointers. The two didn’t play like it was their first game in East Lansing.

Jon Ekey was quiet for much of the day, but he hit a dagger 3-pointer at the top of the key to give Illinois a 50-43 lead with 3:42 left in the game. Rayvonte Rice also chipped in 10 points to help round out an efficient offensive attack by the Illini. Illinois shot 47.7 percent against Michigan State thanks to a slowed, grinding offensive approach. Despite the surprisingly efficient offense from Illinois, this game was all about its nonstop defensive effort.

Illinois has suddenly become a defensive juggernaut. The Illini have allowed fewer than 50 points for four straight games now, but none of their performances compared to the effort displayed Saturday.

Michigan State isn’t a struggling offensive team such as Ohio State or Nebraska; the Spartans have the 14th best offensive efficiency in the nation. Illinois made Michigan State work for every shot and never let up throughout the game. The Spartans shot just 39.1 percent from the floor and were clearly thrown off by the Illini’s defensive urgency.

Groce deserves some credit for his defensive game plan against the Spartans. The Illini played tighter than usual on the perimeter, forcing the Spartans to drive at Nnanna Egwu. That didn’t go well for Michigan State.

Egwu was sensational defensively. The 6-foot-11 center disrupted shots at the rim throughout the game, forcing Michigan State to think twice before attacking him. Egwu blocked three shots but altered many others. One play in particular sticks out, when Egwu forced Gary Harris to come up short at the rim, leading to a 2-on-1 fast break for Illinois. When Egwu got into foul trouble thanks to some questionable calls, Groce went to a zone.

The 2-3 zone defense slowed down the Spartans offensive attack and coaxed them into taking long jumpers. Keith Appling, with his injured wrist, isn’t a shooting threat anymore, nor is any Spartan besides Harris. Michigan State shot only 33.3 percent from behind the arc, with five of its six longballs coming from Harris.

That tight Illinois defense also forced Michigan State to turn the ball over 16 times. Fourteen of those turnovers were Illinois steals. There’s no better recipe for a struggling offense than turnovers, and Illinois took advantage.

Illinois couldn’t be peaking at a better time. The Illini will now take a three-game winning streak into a Senior Night matchup with first-place Michigan on Tuesday. Illinois has numerous resume-building opportunities left in No. 16 Michigan, a matchup with No. 20 Iowa on the road to end the regular season, and the Big Ten tournament.

“We’re getting on a roll right now,” Joseph Bertrand said Thursday. “Hopefully we can win the Big Ten tournament and go on from there.”

At the time, this quote from Bertrand seemed like player speak and understandable confidence in his own team. But now, who knows? Maybe he’s right.

Michael is a senior in Media. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @The_MDubb.