Tip off: 7 PM EST
Spread: MICH ST -19
o/u: 137
m/l: n/a
MICHIGAN STATE
Michigan State began the season with their two toughest opponents in succession. After dropping a 12 point game to the number one ranked Tar Heels, they went on to lose by 5 to #6 ranked Duke. So they started out 0-2. Since that time, however, they have reeled off six straight wins, and beat the FSU Seminoles by 16 points. In that game, Keith Appling of Michigan State scored his career high 24 points, while connecting on 8 of 15 from the floor and 3 of 5 from down town. Brandon Wood and Draymond Green both contributed 16 a piece in the win as well.
The Spartans are not getting anything from their bench, and that might be a problem moving forward. In the win over Florida State, the bench scored an entirety of 4 points, and 3 of them came from Travis Trice, who took only 4 shots in 27 minutes of play.
We all know Draymond Green is going to do his thing. He is averaging a double double and leading the Spartans in scoring at 14.4 points per game, while also contributing nearly 2 steals and nearly a block defensively — he is doing it all. And that is the problem. Appling is going to have to get to be much more consistent and Brandon Wood has similar problems, as before the last two games he scored 24 combined in three straight.
Michigan State will not get their next big test until they face Gonzaga on the 10th.
CENTRAL CONNECTICUT
Last season could be considered a success for Central Connecticut. They posted a 19-12 record while winning 11 of their 18 conference games and lost to Long Island by only 2 in the NEC semis.
Their defense was outstanding. They gave up only 0.94 points per possession in conference play, while averaging roughly a point per possession offensively.
Ken Horton is the real deal. Last season he averaged 19.5 points per game and 8.9 boards and he has been noticed a lot by other programs and scouts. He made 56% of his twos and 38% of his three point attempts and plays excellent defense as well, which almost enabled the team to land a berth in the Big dance. Their defense might have posed problems for even very good teams, and it is how you find Cinderella teams; watching teams like Central Connecticut…
In addition to Horton, Robby Ptacek is also putting up 21.3 points per game, while Kyle Vinales is averaging 20.0 himself. Between Horton, Ptacek and Vinales, the Blue Devils receive 80% of their offense, an offense that ranks 24th in the nation. While they really haven’t faced a single good team yet, tonight will give them a pretty good idea of how they might be able to stack up against the big dogs if they get their chance this March.
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