Amidst some late-season emotional turmoil surrounding the school and the university as a whole, Michigan State rallied to collect 29 wins heading into this year’s NCAA Tournament and will have had nearly two weeks off before taking the floor on Friday against Bucknell.
Despite being one of the favorites to win the national title in the eyes of Vegas and “experts” of college basketball, the jury is still out on how far the Spartans will go. Head coach Tom Izzo knows that the desperation is there during this time of the year and also knows that any of these lower-seeded mid-majors can present problems.
Izzo views Bucknell as no exception. In his pregame presser on Tuesday, he said the Bison could present “some problems” for Michigan State, citing their size and experience factor and comparing them to another power club in the Big Ten.
Izzo on Bucknell: "This is as experienced of a team that we'll play. More like Purdue, only they have more depth than Purdue."
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) March 13, 2018
In a lot of respects, Bucknell does draw comparisons to the Boilermakers. The Bison have seven different players that have averaged at least 20 minutes per game, six of those playing in at least 30 games this year. Conversely, for Purdue, they rolled out the same starting five in all but two games this year, the only five to play more than 20 MPG this year.
And in terms of experience, Bucknell’s top three scorers — Zach Thomas, Nana Foulland, and Stephen Brown — are all seniors. It’s the same case for Purdue, four of their top five scorers are upperclassmen.
Izzo added that this Bucknell team has shades of Middle Tennessee, who bounced them from the tournament in 2016 when the Spartans were perceived title favorites then as well.
Izzo says Bucknell is "as good or better than Middle Tennessee but they’re bigger."
— Matt Charboneau (@mattcharboneau) March 13, 2018
Those who remember the personnel from Middle Tennessee, the scoring between their guards and big men was roughly split 50/50. And their primary scoring forwards — Reggie Upshaw and Darnell Harris — were listed at 6-7 and 6-8, respectively, and both were considerable threats from outside (top-20 in three-point shooting that season).
The 15-seed Blue Raiders in that first-round game back in 2016 shot 11/19 (~58 percent) from downtown to fuel the upset of 2-seed Michigan State.
Bucknell, however, features more true big men in the aforementioned Thomas (6-7) and Foulland (6-9) that do most of their work down low; though Thomas is knocking down triples at a 37.3 percent clip. The Bison as a team are shooting just over 34 percent outside the arc, which was middle of the pack in the Patriot League. So on paper, Bucknell can throw more big bodies at Michigan State than could MTSU, but the three-point threat, again on paper, is not as dangerous with the Bison; though they are not shy about shooting them.
Izzo calls Bucknell "a very good team." Says three seniors "cause problems" and are "very good players." All three 1,000-point scorers. "It's a very experienced team." About 8-9 players who shoot 3s.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) March 13, 2018
March Madness lives up to its moniker on the fact that teams like Bucknell and Middle Tennessee, teams that are often “less talented” than teams like Michigan State in first-round games, can match up enough and get on a hot streak to make things interesting or, in MTSU’s case, pull off the upset.
Tom Izzo knows there is little to no margin for error this time of the year and that making any “wholesale changes” to his lineup is not an option. He does, however, understand that some minor changes can and sometimes should be addressed in the right moments.
Izzo says MSU can make some adjustments but not "wholesale changes" at this point in the year. Could move Jackson to the 3 in some sets, Bridges at 4 and Ward at the 5.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) March 13, 2018
Izzo says Nick Ward "has had a good 4 or 5 days, maybe the best since he's been here."
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) March 13, 2018
The 3-seed BigTen Champion Michigan State Spartans take on the 14-seed Patriot League Champion Bucknell Bison on Friday, March 16 at 7:10 p.m. ET in downtown Detroit at Little Caesars Arena. Fans can see MSU and the other seven teams playing in Detroit practice at LCA on Thursday throughout the day; MSU is slated for 2:35 p.m. ET. Admission and parking is free.
Tickets for the three tournament sessions in Detroit this weekend — two on Friday and one on Sunday — are still available.
