IU basketball game day essentials: Indiana faces Michigan State in East Lansing

Game Day Essentials:

Indiana (14-10, 5-8) vs. No. 11 Michigan State (19-4, 10-2)

• Tip Time: 9 p.m. Eastern, Tuesday
• Location: Breslin Center (14,797), East Lansing, Mich.
• Television: Peacock (Paul Burmeister, Austin Rivers)
• Radio: IU Radio Network (Don Fischer, Errek Suhr, John Herrick)
• Stream: Peacock
• Point Spread:  Michigan State is an 11.5-point favorite
• KenPom Projected Score:  Michigan State 79 Indiana 68
• History: Indiana leads, 73-59.
• Last Meeting: IU 65, MSU 64 on March 10, 2024, in Bloomington
• Tickets (via our StubHub affiliate link)

Michigan State’s Tom Izzo

As one of the top coaches in collegiate men’s basketball history, Tom Izzo has the chance to add more accolades to his name tonight. With his next Big Ten win, Izzo will pass former IU coach Bob Knight to become the conference’s all-time winningest head coach in league victories.

Izzo has had an illustrious 30-season career as the head coach of Michigan State’s men’s basketball program. Across his tenure, Izzo has amassed a 726-299 overall record and a 353-172 record in the Big Ten.

Under Izzo’s lead, the Spartans have made the NCAA Tournament in 27 total seasons, with another potential appearance being blocked due to COVID. Izzo has won 10 regular season Big Ten titles during his stay and has one National Championship victory from the 1999-00 season. He has also earned six Big Ten Tournament victories in his career.

Izzo has no shortage of individual hardware. He has won the Big Ten Coach of the Year award three separate times and won the AP College Coach of the Year award in 1998, along with countless other awards from different outlets. In 2016, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

Michigan State’s results and roster:

Michigan State’s game notes (via MSU Athletics)

About the Spartans

• The Spartans are ranked No. 19 in the NCAA Net Rankings, No. 17 per KenPom.com and No. 15 in the ESPN BPI.
• The Spartans are coming off an 86-74 win over Oregon at home on Saturday, with freshman guard Jase Richardson scoring a career-high 29 points, the most by an MSU player in a single game this year.
• The Spartans are the only team in the country to have just 2 players averaging double-digit points (Jaden Akins and Richardson) while playing under 26.5 mpg and are just one of two teams in the AP Top 25 with at least 7 players averaging at least 7.8 ppg (Arizona).
• MSU has four players averaging at least 8.0 ppg and 10 scoring at least 5.0 ppg.
• MSU has relied on its depth, with five players averaging at least 20.0 minutes per game and 10 players at least 10.0 minutes.
• The Spartans are the only team in the country with 10 players averaging at least 15.0 minutes per game.
  Akins leads the team with 13.4 ppg and is fourth with 3.8 rpg, while Richardson is averaging 10.2 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.9 assists, sophomore forward Coen Carr is third on the team with 8.3 points and junior guard Tre Holloman is averaging 8.2 ppg.
• Junior forward Jaxon Kohler, who has five double-doubles this year, is scoring 7.7 ppg and leads the team with 7.8 rebounds per game, 8th in the Big Ten (9th in B1G games only with 7.8 rpg).
• Redshirt freshman guard Jeremy Fears Jr. is averaging 7.7 points and a team-leading 6.2 assists per game, which ranks 3rd in the Big Ten, while Holloman adds 8.2 points and 3.8 assists (3.9 in B1G, 12th).
• MSU is averaging 23.2 FT attempts per game (No. 22 in the country) after going to the line 17.2 times per game in 2023-24 and the Spartans rank No. 4 in the country in free throw percentage (80.9%) and No. 8 in free throws made per game (18.8).
• The Spartans are No. 3 in the country in fast break points per game (17.35 ppg) and No. 4 in bench points (36.13 ppg).
• MSU also ranks No. 3 in the country in rebound margin (+10.2), No. 8 in defensive rebounds per game (28.57/g) and No. 11 in rebounds per game (40.70).

Michigan’s KenPom notable numbers:

(out of 364 teams)

Tempo – No. 124 (Offense No. 92 / Defense No. 220)

Offensive Efficiency – No. 26

• MSU holds a 51.7% effective field goal percentage on the season, good for No. 142. They struggle on 3-pointers with a 29.3% team percentage (No. 343), but they make it up on 2s with a 55.4% clip (No. 47).
• They’re one of the country’s best free-throw shooting teams at 80.9% (No. 5).  And they get to the line a lot, with FTA/FGA equal to 39.3% (No. 37).
• They are also one of the best offensive rebounding teams, with a 37.1% rate (No. 17).
• The Spartans get most of their points from 2-pointers or the free-throw line. Both percentages on their point distribution are in the top 35 in Division 1.

Defensive Efficiency – No. 12

• Teams have an effective field goal percentage of 45.6% against Michigan State on the year (No. 15). Teams are shooting 29.5% on 3-pointers (No. 14) and 46.4% on 2s (No. 39).
• They limit second-chance points well with an opposing offensive rebound rate of 25.8% (No. 22).
• They have a pretty high block rate as well at 14.4% (No. 16).
• The Spartans don’t place a heavy emphasis on forcing turnovers with only a 16.3% rate (No. 247).

OG’s Pick

Win/Loss Record: 18-3

For those of you who missed it, I made my prediction on the live blog for IU’s last game against Michigan. I picked the loss but was way off on the score.

Will Indiana be able to hold off history and upset Izzo’s Spartans? I don’t think so.

PICK: Michigan State 81 – Indiana 68

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