THE REVIEW: MSU vs MINNESOTA

Michigan State struggled to shoot the jumper but did almost everything else well, leading them to a 68-52 victory that might have been slightly flattering to the victors.   The win marked the 400th career victory for Tom Izzo, making him just the 4th coach in Big Ten history to reach that number (he joins Bob Knight, Gene Keady and Lou Henson in that exclusive club).  After the game's early moments, the Gophers never got any closer than 5 points but MSU didn't completely put them away until the game's final few minutes.  Credit the Gophers for playing hard, doing more from three point range than at almost any time this season, and converting several broken plays when they absolutely needed them.  That allowed Minnesota to avoid being blown off the floor the way Purdue was just a few days ago, but in the end, it only  mitigated the level of defeat...it couldn't stop it from happening.

REVISITING THE 5 KEYS:

1.     Glass –  MSU's been a bit sloppy of late on the boards. They haven't been getting as much done on the offensive glass as they'd like and they gave up an unheard-of 18 offensive boards to Purdue.  Minnesota isn't a great shooting team, so they would love nothing more than to get second chances at the basket.  MSU needs to re-establish their identity.

RESULT – MSU ended up being outrebounded on the offensive boards by one, but when the  Spartans needed it, they controlled the glass in the first half.    They also doubled up Minnesota  in second chance points (10-5), so the ability to close out defensive possessions against a team  that doesn't shoot particularly well was big.

2.     Effort – Minnesota generally has been a team that plays hard under Tubby Smith and that's no different this season.  The Spartans will need to match the Gophers' aggression level.

RESULT – I thought MSU more than matched Minnesota's effort level in this game. 10 steals  and 8 blocks speaks to the activity level MSU displayed, and I thought MSU really got after the  Gophers in a way that allowed their superior skill and tools to show through.  As I saw it, the  only way Minnesota could win this game is if they outworked the Spartans, and that didn't  happen.

3.     Ball Movement – MSU moved the ball exceptionally well in the Purdue game. It's always a key to great offense and with a fairly young Gopher opponent (especially on the perimeter), you'd hope that the Spartans would find some holes to exploit if they're forcing Minnesota to move.

RESULT – I thought MSU ran its offense exceptionally well.  The Spartans only committed 10  turnovers, and against an aggressive, athletic defensive opponent, that was  a nice job overall by  the team.   In the first half, MSU really made use of Nix and Payne, and the Gophers had no  chance to stop either one of the Spartan big men.  Overall, MSU did a great job of getting the  ball to the block and getting results.  If they'd shot the jumper even halfway decently, the results  would have been even better...they certainly had some great looks.

4.     Push – Minnesota is a pretty athletic team overall and Smith's teams historically like to run when given the chance.  However, that's MSU's preferred method of operation as well.  The Spartans should be looking to force tempo whenever possible and turn this into as much of a 94 foot game as they can, as that should play into their advantage.

RESULT – Both teams played solid  enough halfcourt defense that this never turned into the  transition-oriented game I thought it might become.  MSU tried to push the ball whenever  possible, but credit the Gophers for maintaining good floor balance for much of the evening.

5.     Go At Them – Minnesota isn't a huge team but even without Mbakwe, they block a lot of shots. Usually, the best way to counter that sort of defensive approach is to go straight at the shotblocker.   It'll be important for guys like Nix and Green to go up strong and through the defenders around the basket.

RESULT – MSU was aggressive and effective in the post.  The Gophers, the top shotblocking  team in the league, only had 1 in this game.  I think the Spartans did it exactly the way you have  to against a team like this...they went at them with attitude and strength and got great results.


THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY


THE GOOD:

1.     Day Day –  Great, great game from the senior captain.  In  my opinion, this is the best he's played since the Gonzaga win.  The numbers say a ton...22 points on 9-11 from the floor,  14 boards, 6 assists (vs. just 1 TO), 1 block, 1 steal...only free throws were a negative in a statistical sense.  However, what impressed me the most is that his decision making in this game was almost perfect.  He didn't force anything, didn't take unnecessary chances, and made the right decision in almost every instance I can recall.  Also, despite decent numbers for Rodney Williams offensively, I thought Green played one of his better defensive games as well.  He was sound and simply didn't allow Williams to get rolling on the offensive end.

2.     Post Play – Green was a huge part of it, but Nix and Payne had some great moments as well, particularly in a dominant first half.  Both guys have developed a reliable jump hook now and are going to it consistently...that's a heck of a weapon to have, as a good hook shot is almost impossible to defend.  16 points and 8 boards between the two of them represents very good production against a Minnesota team that has some legit size.  The Spartans almost doubled up Minnesota in the paint, outscoring them there 38-20.  Enough said.

3.     BJ – Second straight strong game from Dawson.  Once again, he was aggressive and active, and that produced a strong overall stat line for the freshman from Gary.  He had 14 points, several of them coming on plays where his athleticism and strength helped turned less than pin point passes into baskets.  He had 4 offensive rebounds, which has been a particular strength of his going back to high school.  On defense, he had 4 blocks and 2 steals, showing a propensity to make loud defensive plays while continuing to make improvement in staying solid possession to possession.  He's still just scratching the surface, but the last 2 games represent obvious, manifest progress for him.

4.     Halfcourt defense – The Gophers got some threes to fall, but holding them to 38% overall and, most impressively, mostly denying their dribble penetration, represented a solid effort for the Green and White.  MSU never let the Gophers get anything going in the post, either.

5.     Big Red – Russell Byrd looked the healthiest he has all year and made some contributions on a night where MSU needed them.  He scored 5 points, hitting his only three point attempt, so he gave the offense a boost.  More impressively to me, he had a couple of stretches where he defended Rodney Williams and he hung in there decently.  He still has a long way to go, but this represents the best performance of his young career.

THE BAD AND THE UGLY

1.     Jump shooting – Team wide, it was awful.  Appling, Wood and Thornton were a combined 1-13 and the only make was a late transition layup for Keith.  If MSU had shot at their normal level, this would have easily been a 25 point-plus margin of victory, as the offense functioned well enough to create a LOT of open looks.  MSU just didn't hit them.

2.     Free throws – 61% as a team isn't nearly good enough and this was also a factor in making the game closer for longer than it should have been.  Lots of guys struggled, so it was a team effort in a negative sense.

3.     Trice – The Spartan guard sat this game out with a suspected sports hernia.  Apparently he played hurt against both Michigan and Purdue and the decision was made to sit him out for this one if at all possible, and the game flowed in such a way that MSU got him a break.  Hopefully, he'll be able to fight through whatever the issue is, as MSU needs him to provide reserve point guard minutes.  MSU does have other options behind Appling, but none are as natural to the position as is Trice.


OVERALL – With the win, MSU moves back into a three way tie for first in the conference (with Michigan and Ohio State) at 6-2.  The Spartans get the weekend off and can heal up and prepare for one of their toughest tests on an annual basis, as they'll travel on Tuesday night to Champaign-Urbana to face the Illinois Fighting Illini.  Illinois has been inconsistent this year, as has been the case for much of the past several seasons.  However, if the Illini are “on,” they represent big trouble, as they are among the most talented and athletic teams in the conference.