Column: IU to face challenge against Michigan State

Head Coach

Michigan State’s Tom Izzo is a coach who needs no introduction.

In his 18th season at the helm of the Spartans, Izzo has won eight National Coach of the Year awards, one NCAA championship, seven Big Ten regular season titles and three Big Ten Tournament championships — not to mention six Final Four appearances and 15 straight NCAA Tournament appearances.

Michigan State’s leading scorer

The Spartan offense is led by floor general guard Keith Appling, who leads the team with 14.1 points per game and 4.3 assists per game. Appling ranks 10th in the Big Ten in points per game and sixth in the conference in assists per game, while playing the sixth most minutes per game in the Big Ten (34.0).

Although Appling might be the Spartans’ most important piece because of his scoring and leadership, freshman Gary Harris, a native of Fishers, Ind., might be Michigan State’s most dynamic player.

Harris is second on the team in scoring with an average of 12.3 PPG. The 6-foot-4-inch guard’s physicality and length allow him to blow by defenders when he attacks the basket and his refined scoring touch has made a smooth transition into the college game.

What MSU does well

Rebounding and defense are two of MSU’s biggest strengths.

Michigan State is the only team in the Big Ten with three players ranked in the top 10 in average rebounds per game.

Center Derrick Nix (6.9 RPG) ranks fifth, center Adreian Payne (6.8 RPG) ranks sixth and guard Branden Dawson (6.6 RPG) rounds out the Spartans’ top rebounders by ranking tenth in the Big Ten.

All three of these athletes are massive in size and they possess the ability to use their bodies effectively.

Nix is 6-foot-9-inches and 270 pounds, Payne is 6-foot-10-inches and 240 pounds and Dawson is 6-foot-6-inches and 230 pounds.

Having three players that weigh over a combined 740 pounds is a huge advantage for the Spartans’ rebounding effort, but even more so on the defensive end.

On defense, these three guys can clog the lane, making it hard for any dribble penetration that would lead to open perimeter shots.

As a team, Michigan State ranks second in the Big Ten in opponents’ field goal percentage (37.8 percent) and third in the conference in opponents’ three-point percentage (30.8 percent).

My take

Every time the Hoosiers take on Michigan State, much is made of the relationship between IU Coach Tom Crean and MSU Coach Tom Izzo.

Crean, who served as an assistant coach for four years under Izzo at Michigan State from 1995-1999, is a disciple of Izzo’s basketball philosophy.

After leaving MSU in 1999, Crean found his own success as a head coach at Marquette before taking the reigns of the Indiana basketball program, where he has established a Michigan State-like program that has revived the ghosts of old IU.

So when you look at how IU and MSU will match up on Sunday, is it any wonder these two teams somewhat mirror each other?

In some of the major team stats, there is not much that separates IU and MSU.

Both teams rank in the Big Ten’s top five in opponents’ points per game. Michigan State ranks second by allowing 57.8 PPG and IU ranks fifth by giving up 59.9 PPG.

Both IU (36.9 percent) and Michigan State rank one-and-two in the Big Ten in opponents’ field goal percentage, respectively.

The two teams even have a similar number of wins and losses since the beginning of the 2011-2012 season, as the Spartans have been 46-11 and IU 44-11. The two have the best winning percentages in the Big Ten during that span.

In terms of players, both teams have unquestioned floor leaders that epitomize what the programs are about in Appling and IU senior guard Jordan Hulls.

Both teams have long, athletic scorers, Harris and junior guard Victor Oladipo, who can drive the lane and finish at the rim with the best of them. Oladipo might be a better defender now, but if you give Harris time to develop, I suspect he will become a lock-down defender.

Both teams also value size and strength.

IU possesses seven players over 6-feet-8-inches and Michigan State has five, but MSU also has five players that weigh 240 pounds or more on the roster. 

If there were two areas where IU has an advantage over Michigan State, it would be from behind the arc and at the free throw line.

Overall, the Hoosiers are a better three-point shooting team and rank first in the conference with a 42.2 3-point field goal percentage, going 140-of-332 from behind the arc. Michigan State is only shooting 33.5 percent and 93-of-278 from 3-point range, good for eighth in the league.

When it comes down to it, this is a game that might be decided at the free throw line – a place where IU has had a huge advantage over all of its opponents.

Through 19 games, the Hoosiers lead the nation in free throws made (393) and free throws attempted (538).

In comparison, the Hoosiers have attempted 132 more free throws than MSU and IU has made 104 more attempts than the Spartans, who rank fifth in the Big Ten in free throw attempts through their first 20 games.

Despite missing 16-of-37 free throws against Penn State on Wednesday, IU still boasts the best free throw percentage in the Big Ten and has shown the ability to make pressure free throw. They went 13-of-17 from the line in overtime to beat Georgetown earlier this season.

Prediction

One stat that stands out about Michigan State is the Spartans commit the second most turnovers per game (14.1) in the Big Ten, behind only Minnesota’s 14.7 average.

Against Minnesota, the Hoosiers were able to force 17 turnovers, including 12 in the first half that fueled IU to a 52-29 halftime lead.

On Sunday in front of a hyped Assembly Hall crowd, I expect Michigan State to have similar troubles against IU’s aggressive defense.

With Oladipo pressuring either Harris or Appling – Crean has illustrated that he will put Oladipo on an opponents’ best scorer, even if he’s a point guard – the Hoosiers should be able to force the Michigan State ball handlers into making mistakes, especially early when both teams are settling in.

Throughout the game, the Hoosiers will need to capitalize on these turnovers by getting into transition. Forwards sophomore Cody Zeller and senior Christian Watford will need to out-run and out-hustle MSU’s big men to get easy baskets and possibly provide a few lopsided runs.

Michigan State will continue to fight back until till the clock reads zeros, but IU’s ability to get to the free throw line will put this game on ice — provided they make the free throws.

In a tough one, Hoosiers win 73-67.

­— mdnorman@indiana.edu