Michigan and Michigan State have played 181 times. Yet there only have been two games when both teams were ranked in the top 10. Sunday’s…
Michigan and Michigan State have played 181 times.
Yet there only have been two games when both teams were ranked in the top 10.
Sunday’s meeting at Crisler Center will be the third.
The stakes will be high as the Wolverines (24-3,13-3 Big Ten) and Spartans (22-5,13-3) meet in their first of at least two meetings this season. Both teams are tied atop the Big Ten standings and jockeying for prime seeding in the NCAA tournament.
Here are three keys for a Michigan victory:
[ Michigan State vs. Michigan basketball: Scouting report, predictions]
It all starts with Cassius Winston, Michigan State’s point guard.
Michigan coach John Beilein recruited Winston when he was a star at U-D Jesuit and has coached against him four times in two seasons.
Winston is a bona fide star in his junior season, and perhaps the front runner to be named Big Ten Player of the Year.
There are few players in the country who are asked to do as much as Winston and still produce at a high level. Winston leads the Spartans in minutes played and takes 27.7 percent of MSU’s shots when he’s on the floor.
He is a great 3-point shooter who is averaging 43.4 percent on 5.9 3-point attempts per game. But he also can catch and shoot and hits plenty of tough shots off the dribble. Winston isn’t the most athletic point guard, but he’s quick and crafty enough to get to the rim and he ranks fourth in the country with 7.
