After Great Start, Miami Collapses Against Michigan State

The Jayhawks have to feel at least a little uneasy about it, especially if they watched any of Michigan State’s first-round victory over eighth-seeded Miami. At 4:15 p.m. on Sunday the Spartans will meet a No. 1 seed in the Kansas Jayhawks. If Bridges and Ward get into foul trouble, which they often do, MSU has no chance at all. “You beat the best and make it all the way to the top it’s an even sweeter feeling knowing that you didn’t shy away”.

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo gestures in the second half of a first-round game against Miami in the men’s NCAA college basketball tournament in Tulsa, Okla., Friday, March 17, 2017.

The Wolverines will enter the NCAA’s as one of the hottest teams in the nation, and it’s not too far-fetched to picture them making a run to the second weekend. “We just had practice (Saturday afternoon) and went over the scouting report kind of in depth, and we’ll go back to the hotel and do the same thing. And yet, getting in at our place, that (alone) isn’t such a good deal”. Defensively, Michigan State is yielding 68.4 points against the opposing teams. Each averages more than 30 minutes and they combine to score 40.3 of the Hurricanes’ 69.4 points a game.

MI was in a gym, shooting 3-pointers like it was practice.

After First Round losses to Georgia State (2015) and Yale (2016), Baylor junior Al Freeman (21 points) came off the bench and had the biggest impact on the game for the Bears in their win.

“When he was here at Tulsa, we played them over in (Hawaii) in a hell of a game and his team was good”. Perhaps the one matchup that will decide this game will be Nairn and Winston against Mason, and the MSU duo has struggled with quick guards all year.

“Well you know what, not only did we get a win in the NCAA Tournament, I think where it’s different is we got punched in the face”, Izzo said. “I am really excited and I can’t believe it”. Izzo, in his 22nd-year as MSU’s head coach, owns a 7-5 all-time mark against Self, including a 4-2 record against his Jayhawks, a 2-3 mark when Self was at IL and a win over Self’s Tulsa team in 1998.

Both teams in the second half were efficient as they could be at taking care of the ball.

“Bill and I have been through a lot”, Izzo said. “You definitely could tell”. I think he trusted my maturity level a little bit, and I’m very happy that he did that and that I ended up not fouling again.

Miles Bridges is, without question, Michigan State’s best basketball player. Self is a graduate of Oklahoma State, and he coached at IL before coming to Kansas. Eleven of their 16 Big 12 wins came by seven points or less, so that seems extremely relevant given the spread. The only disappointment is that it was played at such a high level that it’s unfortunate that one of these teams, Oklahoma State in this case, has to be sent home after just one game.