PREMIUM
Rogers' *10* Big 10 TOP TICKET >> 25-13-1 Run with ALL 10*s! $20 Tuesday!
(NCAAB) Michigan State vs. Minnesota,
Point Spread: 6.50 | -110.00 Michigan State (Away)
Result: Win
Point Spread: 6.50 | -110.00 Michigan State (Away)
Result: Win
The set-up: Tom Izzo's Michigan State team opened the season ranked 12th in the AP's preseason poll but gets set to open Big Ten play tonight in Minnesota just 8-5 and minus its best player, 6-7 freshman guard Miles Bridges. Michigan State was hoping Bridges, the team's leading scorer (16.6 points) and rebounder (8.8), could be back for this game after missing the last five games with a foot injury, but Izzo terms it "very doubtful." Meanwhile, coming off an 8-23 season last year (including 2-16 in Big Ten games), Richard Pitino's Gophers are a surprising 12-1!
Michigan State: The Spartans were expected to be a top-25 team all season long, but injuries and youth have made it difficult for coach Tom Izzo's team to be consistent. In Bridges' absence, fellow freshmen, the 6-8 Nick Ward (13.2 & 6.4) and PG Cassius Winston (7.5 & 6.0 APG), have stepped forward into more prominent roles. Guard Harris (13.4 PPG) is the top scoring backcourt player with Bridges out but Izzo does have depth on the perimeter, as including Winston, six guards other than Harris combine to average right around 31 PPG.
Minnesota: Pitino won the NIT back in 2013-14 (his first year at Minnesota) but then came an 18-15 (6-12 in the Big Ten) season and then last year's 'nightmare.' Pitino features a four-guard rotation, with Mason (13.2) as the team's leading scorer, along with McBrayer (12.6), Coffey (11.9) and Springs (9.3). The 6-6 Murphy (10.5 & 7.1) is the team's leading rebounder joined up front by 6-10 center Lynch (8.5 & 6.2) and the 6-9 Curry (6.7 & 6.2).
The pick: The Gophers lost by eight points on this floor in last season's Big Ten opener, when Michigan State was ranked No. 1 and Minnesota was on its way to losing its first 13 Big Ten games. The shoe seems to be on the other foot now, with Minnesota 12-1 and MSU unranked at just 8-5 plus without its best player. However, Izzo continues to tinker with his team's lineup and he may continue to do so until Bridges returns and beyond. Izzo has used 10 different players in his starting lineup in the first 13 games as he continues to try to find the right combination to get the Spartans playing their best. Based on "past history," he seems to find a way. Izzo plus points against "little Ricky?" Make Michigan State a 10* play.
Michigan State: The Spartans were expected to be a top-25 team all season long, but injuries and youth have made it difficult for coach Tom Izzo's team to be consistent. In Bridges' absence, fellow freshmen, the 6-8 Nick Ward (13.2 & 6.4) and PG Cassius Winston (7.5 & 6.0 APG), have stepped forward into more prominent roles. Guard Harris (13.4 PPG) is the top scoring backcourt player with Bridges out but Izzo does have depth on the perimeter, as including Winston, six guards other than Harris combine to average right around 31 PPG.
Minnesota: Pitino won the NIT back in 2013-14 (his first year at Minnesota) but then came an 18-15 (6-12 in the Big Ten) season and then last year's 'nightmare.' Pitino features a four-guard rotation, with Mason (13.2) as the team's leading scorer, along with McBrayer (12.6), Coffey (11.9) and Springs (9.3). The 6-6 Murphy (10.5 & 7.1) is the team's leading rebounder joined up front by 6-10 center Lynch (8.5 & 6.2) and the 6-9 Curry (6.7 & 6.2).
The pick: The Gophers lost by eight points on this floor in last season's Big Ten opener, when Michigan State was ranked No. 1 and Minnesota was on its way to losing its first 13 Big Ten games. The shoe seems to be on the other foot now, with Minnesota 12-1 and MSU unranked at just 8-5 plus without its best player. However, Izzo continues to tinker with his team's lineup and he may continue to do so until Bridges returns and beyond. Izzo has used 10 different players in his starting lineup in the first 13 games as he continues to try to find the right combination to get the Spartans playing their best. Based on "past history," he seems to find a way. Izzo plus points against "little Ricky?" Make Michigan State a 10* play.
