“If they weren’t a good enough team they woudn’t be in the tournament right now so it’s not up to us to take them lightly. we have to go out there and lock in”, says MSU Guard Joshua Langford. When the Wolverines dunk, dish or drive for a big play, they are free to celebrate by sticking out their tongue as Wagner does regularly. Note the guy in the suit (Jim Delany) with a big smile on his face. The game against No. 3 Michigan State tips off from Little Caesars Arena at 7:10 p.m. on CBS. Many will pick the Buckeyes to lose their opener to 12th-seeded South Dakota State, if only because history tells us the popular 5/12 upset pick has a 36 percent chance of making you look smart.
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Despite two wins over the Spartans and a Big Ten Tournament championship, both teams will be No. 3 seeds in the tournament. Miles Bridges returned for his sophomore year to do one thing: win the national title.
Junior forward Cooper Marody netted All-Big Ten first-team honors and clinched the Big Ten scoring title. Bucknell shouldn’t pose a threat in that area but 6-foot-10 senior center Nana Foulland is averaging 7.1 rebounds as well as 15.4 points per game.
However, coach Bobby Hurley and Arizona State got into the NCAA tournament – not missing out, despite coach Dan Hurley and Rhode Island’s loss to Davidson shrinking the at-large field by one team. I’m paying attention to the little things, the details. “The crunch in the schedule makes it hard, we went through some things here that made it hard”, Izzo said. “And I’ve kind of withstood the test of time because I’ve stayed at a place that I love greatly”. Izzo said. “Some years you go in saying we have to do this better than we’ve ever done it”.
Michigan State will open tournament play against Bucknell, the champion of the Patriot League. They now have a record of 2-7, picking up a win in 2005 and another 2006.
Teams like Bucknell, with seniors that came in together and grew together, have become rare in the one-and-done era. But the Spartans have won only one game in the last two seasons and were stunned by Middle Tennessee State in 2016. He averages 12.6 points and a league-best 6.8 assists while also pacing the conference in 3-point percentage (52.6) and proving to be an adept facilitator for this all-star lineup.
“All three of them are 1,000-point scorers”, Izzo said.
MI also has the ability to spread the floor with multiple 3-point shooters, a Beilein staple. The Big East has two No. 1 seeds – Villanova and Xavier – but not much else. Now we’re to the point where we want to beat teams like that. “We knew the main goal was to get back here”. If you judge the league by how it ranks among the six major conferences, this might not be the year the league breaks its 20-year drought of not winning an NCAA Tournament.
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“It’s definitely a blessing being able to be with such a great class”, Brown said. They averaged over four more possessions per game than Michigan State does.
