(13) Michigan St. beat (4) Kansas last night 79-73. It looks like the Spartans will indeed be a true early season test for the Cards, especially because they play them at their home. Denzel Valentine got a triple double- 29 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists against the Jayhawks.
Michigan State
- Thread starter shadow force
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Good question. He will be one of the focal points of the defense. He is 6'5" 220 lbs so not a small guard. It maybe by committee. I haven't been able to really see this years Cards play yet so I can't really say with a knowledgeable opinion yet. Lee? Lewis?
Lewis is too small to handle Valentine. Valentine is a near impossible match up for us. It will be an opportunity to see just how good our wing defense is with Adel and Lee. Would think a veteran like Valentine would have his way with Adel, despite Adel's good defensive skill already.
It's a tough game for us. No crystal ball on how we'll design to try to slow him down. I'm thinking the best approach would be to let him get his and cover everything else.
It's a tough game for us. No crystal ball on how we'll design to try to slow him down. I'm thinking the best approach would be to let him get his and cover everything else.
That is a very real possibility and a game plan that Pitino has used before in the past. More or less let the one guy go off and get his points but lock down everyone else.
Hasn't Valentine been at MSU for about 6 years?
I haven't seen the Cards play anything but man-to-man yet this year. Do they even know how to play Pitino's brand of zone?
UNF looks like they will be very tough this weekend. Too early to look ahead to MSU.
100% agree. This team can't afford to overlook any team. Pitino might be saving that match up zone for the Spartans. Who knows? I know Valentine is a match up nightmare for most everyone. He's a great player who stayed in college and got better from year to year. He's talented, skilled, and polished. We have nobody on the roster that can guard him one on one.
Michigan st looked very mediocre to me. They were down double digits more than once. Valentine and the other guy bailed their butts out of a blow out loss. Not impressed with them at all.
I'm confident #4 Kansas disagrees with your impressions of MSU. A 6 point win is a long way from being "bailed out of a blowout loss".
I think that is a distinct possibility. I wouldn't put that past Pitino to have the match up zone- or an early version of it for this team- in his back pocket for MSU. We'll see.
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We need to hit free throws and go up strong and finish shots under and around the bucket.
I remember when all the Memphis fans would say the same thing about the McCray brothers. Scooter came first and played 2 years before Rodney and then Scooter got injured and redshirted for year. They were both so good that they played a lot right a way. I think all together there was a McCray brother on the team for six years.
Man, Duke was fortunate to escape tonight with a 7 point win over VCU. They certainly are struggling in the early season this year. I'm sure they will turn it around. They will be one of the top teams come tournament time.