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    IU basketball game day essentials: Hoosiers host Michigan State

    Mike SchumannBy IU Basketball 1 Comment
    Photo by Mike Schumann / The Daily Hoosier

    Game Day Essentials:

    Indiana (17-11, 8-9) vs. No. 13 Michigan State (23-5, 13-4)

    Three keys from last matchup

    1. MSU 19-0 run buries the Hoosiers.  Indiana was hanging in midway through the second half. A Lamar Wilkerson dunk with 11:19 left tied the game at 53.  But that’s when the wheels came off.  In the course of six minutes, the Spartans were up 72-53, and the game was over.  In that stretch IU had five turnovers and missed four straight shots.  The Hoosiers struggled to find any balance in their offense beyond the production from Lamar Wilkerson, and a switching MSU defense stymied Indiana’s flow.

    2. Indiana turnovers –> MSU points.  Nobody looks to capitalize on miscues like Michigan State.  And the Hoosiers gave them plenty of chances.  Indiana gave it away 14 times and MSU scored a staggering 29 points off those mistakes. Michigan State got 10 of their points during the decisive second half run off IU turnovers. Reed Bailey had four turnovers to lead the way for IU.  Indiana only had three more assists than turnovers.

    3. Spartans dominate the glass.  MSU held a 37-19 overall advantage on the boards, and they grabbed 13 on the offensive end compared to just five for IU.  The Spartans scored 11 second chance points.  Michigan State also outscored IU by 10 in the paint, as they were the bigger, more physical and athletic team in this one.

    HIGHLIGHTS

    FINAL STATS

    Image

    Michigan State’s results and roster

    Michigan State’s game notes (via MSU Athletics)

    About the Spartans

    • Michigan State enters Sunday’s game with a 23-5 overall record (13-4 Big Ten) following a thrilling 76-74 win at No. 8 Purdue on Thursday.
    • The Spartans are No. 13 in the latest Associated Press Top 25 and ESPN Coaches polls.
    • MSU is No. 11 in the NCAA Net Rankings, No. 10 per KenPom and are one of 14 schools w/at least seven Quad 1 wins and are one of 12 schools nationally with at least 14 Quad 1/2 wins.
    • MSU is ranked No. 13 in the Associated Press and ESPN Coaches polls.
    • MSU is No. 11 in the country in assists (18.5 apg), with Jeremy Fears Jr. No. 1 nationally with 9.1 apg.
    • MSU ranks No. 3 in the country in rebound margin (+12.1) and Jaxon Kohler is second in the B1G (No. 33 nationally) with 9.1 rpg.
    • The Spartans are No. 22 nationally in scoring defense (66.4 ppg) and rank No. 6 nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency per KenPom.
    • MSU ranks No. 12 nationally, and lead the B1G, in fast break points (16.5 ppg).
    • MSU’s captains (Cooper, Kohler, Carr, Fears Jr.) have combined for 62.6% of the team’s scoring (1,374 of 2,194 points) and average 49.1 ppg, 24.2 rpg and 13.0 assists.
    • Through 28 games, MSU has four players scoring in double figures and eight averaging at least 5.0 ppg.
    • Fears, who leads the team with 31.9 minutes played, leads the team with 14.9 ppg and is handing out 9.1 assists per game, first in Division I … His 255 total assists rank No. 1 in the country.
    • Kohler is second on the team in scoring with 12.1 ppg and tops the team with 9.1 rpg (2nd B1G, #33 nationally) … Kohler, who became the first player in MSU history under Head Coach Izzo to have five-straight double-doubles and ranks No. 28 nationally with 11 this season, has scored in double figures 21 times.
    • Carr, one of the most athletic players in all of college basketball, is third on the team with 11.6 ppg, third on the team with 5.3 rpg and 1.3 apg in 28.6 mpg.
    • Cooper, who had 16 points and a career-best 16 rebounds vs. Duke and scored a career-high 20 points against Ohio State, is playing a career-high 26.4 minutes, is fourth on the team with 10.5 ppg and second with 7.4 rpg, sixth in the B1G … He has scored in double figures 16 times.
    • Jordan Scott, who scored 15 points at Minnesota in his first career start, is averaging 6.1 ppg and 3.3 rpg in 19.8 mpg (8.1 ppg and 3.1 rpg in 22.4 mpg in B1G) and Cam Ward is averaging 5.1 ppg and is fourth on the team with 4.3 rpg.
    • Kur Teng is averaging 7.2 ppg and 2.1 rpg, while senior guard Trey Fort is tallying 3.9 ppg, redshirt freshman Jesse McCulloch is averaging 2.5 ppg and 1.4 rpg and senior guard Denham Wojcik averages 1.3 assists in 5.7 minutes.
    • Divine Ugochukwu, out for the season with a left foot injury, averaged 5.1 ppg, 1.5 rpg and 1.6 apg in 16.9 mpg in 22 games.

    The Fears Factor

    • MSU Head Coach Tom Izzo refers to his point guards as the head of the snake and that if the head falls, the body falls … Redshirt sophomore guard Jeremy Fears has been the head of the snake this season.
    • Not only leading the country in assists (255) and assists per game (9.1), but Fears has also been one of the most important players in the MSU rotation.
    • Per CBBAnalytics, Fears has scored or assisted on 58.4 percent of MSU’s points when he is on the floor (1,033 of 1,779).
    • Fears leads the country in points created per 40 minutes (46.3), per CBB Analytics.
    • In addition, he ranks No. 7 nationally (again, thanks CBB Analytics) is assister-scorer combos, connecting with Coen Carr on baskets 58 times, including 36 alley-oop dunks (62.1 percent of their connections).

    Defend, Rebound & Run                     

    • One of the staples of Michigan State men’s basketball under Head Coach Tom Izzo has been to Defend, Rebound & Run.
    • This year, the Spartans have been doing just that … MSU ranks No. 22 nationally in scoring defense (66.4 ppg), No. 3 nationally in rebound margin (+12.1), No. 20 in rebounds per game (40.6 rpg) and No. 12 nationally in fast break points per game (16.5 ppg).
    • In addition, the Spartans rank No. 6 nationally, per KenPom, in adjusted defensive efficiency.

    Core Four

    • MSU Head Coach Tom Izzo has said that the success of the Spartans this season would largely depend on the team’s captains, seniors Carson Cooper and Jaxon Kohler, junior Coen Carr and red shirt sophomore Jeremy Fears Jr.
    • Through 28 games, the team’s core four are averaging a combined 49.1 points, 24.2 rebounds and 13.0 assists.
    • They have accounted for 62.6 percent of the team’s points (1,374 of 2,174), 59.6 percent of the team’s rebounds (677 of 1,136) and 70.5 percent of the team’s assists (365 of 518).

    Series History

    • Indiana has won three of the last five overall.
    • Ten of the last 16 games in the series have been decided by 10 points or fewer, including eight games decided by six or fewer.
    • Tom Izzo is 30-20 in his career against Indiana.
    • The Spartans are 16-50 on the road against Indiana and have lost four of the last five games played at Assembly Hall.
    • MSU’s last win at IU was a 78-71 victory on Feb. 20, 2021.

    No. 10 Michigan State’s KenPom notable numbers:

    (out of 365 teams)

    Tempo – No. 266 (Offense No. 201 / Defense No. 340)

    Offensive Efficiency – No. 36

    • Michigan State holds an effective field goal percentage of 53.3 percent on the year (No. 96). They are shooting 35 percent from three (No. 119) and 53.7 percent on 2s (No. 103).
    • At 38.5%, MSU has the No. 6 highest offensive rebounding rate.
    • Michigan State assists on 67.2% of their makes, which comes in at No. 2 in the nation.
    • The Spartans turn it over at a 17.3% rate, No. 220 nationally

    Defensive Efficiency – No. 6

    • Opponents hold a 47.4 percent effective field goal percentage against MSU (No. 30). Teams are shooting 31.6 percent from three (No. 57) and 47.3 percent on 2s (No. 38).
    • Opponents only get offensive rebounds on 22.4% of misses, which is No. 1 in the country.
    • The Spartans force turnovers on just 15.2% of possessions, which comes in at No. 277 nationally.
    • MSU allows a high volume of threes.  Three point attempts are 46.2% of total field goals, which is a top-20 highest rate in the nation.

    TDH PREDICTION:  MICHIGAN STATE 70  INDIANA 68

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