A bit of a quick and dirty preview. The quick turnaround and going to Disney with the family is keeping me from doing a full preview. The important thing to know is that Michigan State is a bit overrated. They will not finish the season in the top 25. That being said, this will be a very tough matchup for the Golden Eagles. The zone worked well against Georgia Tech, but that’s because their team only has one established 3-point shooter. Michigan State has four of them. MSU only goes 8 deep and one of their stars, former Marquette target Branden Dawson, has been limited the last two games due to illness. The key player to stop is Travis Trice. The senior PG has been electric since stepping out of Keith Appling’s shadow. The x factor for Michigan State is freshman Marvin Clark Jr. In limited time the freshman has shot 9-14 from three.
Mascot: Spartans
Conference: Big 10
13-14 Record: 29-9 (12-6)
13-14 RPI: 18
13-14 KenPom: 9
14-15 Record: 4-1 (W: @Navy, Loyola (IL), Santa Clara, Rider* L: Duke*)
14-15 KenPom: 13
Coach: Tom Izzo (20th season)
Departures from 13-14:
Keith Appling: Starting PG, 11.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 4.5 apg, 1.2 spg, .362 3P%
Gary Harris: Starting SG, 16.7 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.8 spg, .352 3P%
Adrien Payne: Starting C, 16.4 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 0.9 bpg, .423 3P%
Kenny Kaminski: 3rd off bench, 4.9 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.4 apg, 0.3 bpg, .494 3P%
Russell Byrd: 5th off bench, 1.1 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 0.1 apg, 0.2 bpg, .286 3P%
Alex Gauna: 6th off bench, 1.6 ppg, 1.3 rpg, 0.2 apg, 0.2 bpg, .000 3P%
Arrivals:
Tum Tum Nairn Jr: 3.7 star PG
Javon Bess: 3.7 star SG
Marvin Clark Jr: 3 star SF
Probable Starters:
PG: Travis Trice: 6-0 170 SR, 16.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 6.4 apg, 0.4 spg, .455 3P%
SG: Bryn Forbes: 6-3 175 JR, 9.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 1.2 apg, 0.8 spg, .379 3P%
SF: Denzel Valentine: 6-5 220 JR, 12.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 4.8 apg, 0.8 spg, .370 3P%
PF: Branden Dawson: 6-6 225 SR, 12.0 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.5 spg, .000 3P%
C: Matt Costello: 6-9 245 JR, 6.6 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 0.8 apg, 1.2 bpg, .000 3P%
Probable Bench:
Tum Tum Nairn Jr: 5-10 170 FR PG: 1.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 3.8 apg, 0.0 spg, .000 3P%
Gavin Schilling: 6-9 240 SO PF: 7.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 0.2 apg, 0.8 bpg, .000 3P%
Marvin Clark Jr: 6-6 225 FR SF: 9.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 0.4 apg, 1.0 bpg, .643 3P%
Probable Benchwarmers:
Javon Bess: 6-5 205 FR SG (injured, doubtful for tonight)
Colby Wollenman: 6-7 235 RSJR SF
Keenan Wetzel: 6-4 215 RSSR SG
Alvin Ellis III: 6-4 205 SO SF
Trevor Bohnhoff: 6-7 225 JR SF
Best Case: Marquette wins by 5
Worst Nightmare: Marquette loses by 18
Final Predication: 71 – 65 MSU
Paint Touches 