Michigan State off to a good start as they lead 6-0 w/ a little over 16 minutes left in the first half.
Jay Bilas: "Travis Walton is the best one-on-one defender in college basketball." Amen! I'm trying to get coverage of this game via MMOD, but it's unwatchable. I'm getting the audio, but the video keeps freezing up. It sounds like neither team is getting anything going though. About ten minutes into the game and neither team had eclipsed ten points, Marquette having not even scored a bucket.
<div class="quote_poster">Mamba Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Maybe it's your connection? I've got perfect video feed.</div> I doubt it. I have a pretty solid cable connection. What's your position in line on MMOD? Does that matter? Game Update: Michigan State - 20, Marquette - 9, 7:22 remaining
Amazing defense by the Spartans so far. 19 points at the half with no 2-pt. field goals allowed. They look much better than the last time I saw them.
<div class="quote_poster">44Thrilla Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">Amazing defense by the Spartans so far. 19 points at the half with no 2-pt. field goals allowed. They look much better than the last time I saw them.</div> Yeah, that's their staple. That's why I've been saying they have a chance to knock off North Carolina if they get to that level, because if there's one type of team that can beat the Heels, it's a team that plays a slow, half-court offense with a strong defense, and that's Michigan State. I haven't been watching much of this game, but it sounds like your typical, boring (yet entertaining for junkies like us) slugfest. The Idong Ibok injury hurts Michigan State in the respect that they don't have any overall depth, but if there's one place they do have the slightest semblance of depth, it's in the post, where they have guys like Drew Naymick, Goran Suton, and Marquise Gray all capable of playing 35+ minutes per game. It's not that huge of a loss. Now if Neitzel went down, that'd be another story. They're not necessarily a one man team, because their defense is so great, but offensively they're definitely too dependant upon him.
I don't know, MSU has dominated this game, but only lead by 12. Marquette will make a run at some point in the 2nd half.
Michigan State: 61 Marquette: 49 Recap Out of all the positives that you can take away from this win, the most impressive one for me was that Michigan State was able to win so handedly without relying on Drew Neitzel offensively. It wasn't that they just benched him after the game got out of control either; it was about nine minutes into the game before he scored his first basket, and he wound up only shooting 4-11 on the game. Maybe tonight was just an anomaly, but if the "other" guys can step up and play like they did tonight against North Carolina on Saturday, then I still like Michigan State in that one. It's really hard to bet against a coach with a 24-8 all-time NCAA Tournament record too.
I'm glad that everyone else has now seen the Spartans at their best - these guys can play. I love watching them as long as it's not Bucky they're pounding on. MSU is so physical under the basket, teams simply can't score in the paint. Their perimeter defense was also tremendous - Marquette will take 3's from anywhere on the court in any game, but I've rarely seen them so hesitant to launch their shots. Great win for Sparty, and here's hoping for the upset on Saturday!
