MSU expert columnist predicts Spartans-Lobos game in NCAA Tournament
Will Michigan State basketball move on to the Sweet 16 on Sunday night? Graham Couch of the Lansing State Journal has some thoughts on that and how this second round NCAA Tournament matchup between the Spartans and Lobos will play out.
Michigan State will battle No. 10 seed New Mexico in a second round NCAA Tournament matchup from Cleveland on Sunday night. The game is scheduled to tip off around 8:40 p.m. ET, with the winner moving on to the Sweet 16.
The Spartans relatively handled No. 15 seed Bryant in their first round matchup on Friday, winning the game by more than 20 points in the end. New Mexico used a dominant second half effort to upset No. 7 seed Marquette in their first round matchup.
As far as New Mexico goes, Couch believes the Lobos possess arguably the best player on the floor in this matchup. New Mexico star guard Donovan Dent is a game-changer and is who Couch focused his Lobos analysis on -- see a bit of that below:
"Dent makes the Lobos go. The ball is in his hands a lot — he has one of the higher usage rates in college basketball — but it's for good reason. He's a multi-level scorer and shot-maker, and 40% 3-point shooter who only takes about two per game. He does a lot of his work getting to his spots inside the arc and getting downhill and to the rim. He operates one of the most uptempo offenses in college basketball, though it didn't look like it against Marquette."
As far as the game goes and how Michigan State can handle Dent, here's what Couch had to say:
"The Spartans' were overly amped for their first-round game and it showed with some wild missed shots and missed assignments early on. That should be out of their system. I like this matchup for MSU. Dent is a terrific guard, but MSU has a lot to throw at him."
How does Couch ultimately see this game playing out in the end? Does he like Michigan State to move on to the Sweet 16 or their season come to a close on Sunday? See his full analysis and prediction on the Lansing State Journal.
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This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: MSU-New Mexico Prediction, Matchup Analysis from LSJ's Graham Couch
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