Final Four Team Preview: Michigan St.

Michigan St. Spartans, 27-11

• Conference: Big Ten
• Seed: 7
• Leading Scorer: Travis Trice (14.8 points per game)
• Path to the Final Four:
• Round 1 - Defeated Georgia, 70-63
• Round of 32 - Defeated Virginia, 60-54
• Sweet 16 - Defeated Oklahoma, 62-58
• Elite 8 - Defeated Louisville, 76, 70 (Overtime)

Michigan St. was not a Final Four team. They weren't even a top 25 team. The Spartans were just 19-10 and 10-6 in the Big Ten. The had losses to Minnesota, Illinois, Nebraska, and Texas Southern. They were coming off back-to-back losses, including a home loss to Minnesota. And this wasn't ancient history. The second of those back-to-back losses was on March 1. March, though, belongs to Tom Izzo.

Michigan St. rebounding by winning two big games over Purdue and Indiana to set themselves up for the Big Ten Tournament. They took out Ohio St. and Maryland to set up a monster game against Wisconsin for the Big Ten Championship. The Spartans lost the game, of course, but they took the Badgers to overtime and played right with them for 40 minutes. Clearly, this team began to believe more and more that they had a chance to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

That is exactly what happened, which should come as no surprise to anyone who has been following college basketball since Tom Izzo took over the reigns at Michigan St. Izzo always seems to have his players playing their best basketball during the tournament. This season is no exception. Michigan St. is able to win games now that they could not, and did not, win during the regular season. They're doing it mostly on the defensive side of the ball. They have given up just 61.3 points per game in the tournament so far, down nearly 2 points from their season average. 

So how do you beat them? As with any Michigan St. team, you have to be prepared to rebound the basketball. The Spartans will go after it, like they always do. This year's team is also one of the best teams in the country at sharing the basketball. They average 17.1 assists per game and are an efficient offensive team. Ken Pomeroy has them ranked as his 13th best team in the country for offensive efficiency. So if you're going to beat them, you need to disrupt their offense. That starts with Travis Trice. Trice is Michigan St.'s version of Aaron Harrison. He is always hitting the big shot when the game is on the line. He hits big shots, but he is not averse to giving up the ball either. He also leads the team in assists (5.2 per game). If you're able to control Trice, you'll seriously hamper Michigan St.'s offense because so much of it runs through Trice.

Stopping Travis Trice is easier said than done, of course. Just ask Virginia, Oklahoma, and Louisville. Can Duke get the job done where others have failed? The Blue Devils will no doubt have Quinn Cook shadowing Trice, much like he did on Kevin Pangos in the Gonzaga game or Marcus Paige when they played Carolina. If Cook is able to annoy Trice and force him into a poor game, Duke will win. If Trice gets free, Michigan St. could be playing for a national title.