After an up and down season (up: beating Texas, Illinois, and 11 other games away from the Breslin, down: losing to NC by 310, Maryland, and PSU and NW at the Bres) the Spartans found a way to close the door on the terrible, horrible, talent-devoid Hoosiers to secure the first outright B10 title since 1999.
If you weren't able to watch the game the final box score doesn't do the game justice. The box score is ugly. The game was disgusting. Think Richard Simmons singing backup for the Jonas Brothers, all covering [fill in your least favorite musicians] greastest hits. Since the Jonas Brothers can't sing or remember words to songs they couldn't ever begin -- for even one moment, in a parallel bizarro universe, under the most powerful hallucinagenic and inspriational drugs -- to write or perform...I imagine that nightmarish conglomerate singing anything by Van Halen. That is what the MSU Indiana game was like.
Chris Allen has managed to stay consistent. The interesting thing he is getting away with these days is tackling* people. With all the terrible calls during the game -- and there were plenty -- somehow Allen managed to get whistled for one foul. As a ratio of tackles to fouls I would say it was abotu 5/1. I suppose it is smart to keep doing it until you get called for it. Tackling tends to throw the offensive player off his game.
Roe dominated at times. Suton dominated at times. Then Suton stopped dominating.
It is good to have Raymar back. I hope he plays with this sense of urgency for the rest of the season. He has a unique skill set and size, and by focusing less energy on funny face production and more energy on dominating mismatches --- which he should always be able to find -- Raymar could be a double double guy EVERY night.
Lucas and Lucious (or luscious, to some) are the best true point guard combo MSU has ever had. There have been serviceable backups, but these guys are both for real. Lucious is just a player. He has no memory in regards to failure. He has a reset button. He smiles. He plays with energy. He has no fear. He is going to be very, very good in the coming years. Lucas is as good as he decides to be.
MSU has a ton of matchup advantages. Raymar is too big and long for guards and too quick and has too much range for big men to guard.
Suton can face up from 15+ feet and make you come out to guard him. He can put the ball on the floor and hit awkward shots consistently enough to go by if you overplay him. Suton can pass as well as any big man in the conference.
There are about 3 people in the country that can stay in front of Lucas. If you overplay him he should be able to get into the lane 99% of the time. He can hit from the outside enough to be a threat.
Roe is strong, quick, and handles the ball VERY well for his size. I really think he is a more polished (earlier in his career) Andre Hutson. He defends, has post moves, and doesn't make me nervous off the dribble anywhere on the floor. Like Suton, Roe has great vision and touch in making the extra pass.
Summers is probably the most improved player this season. He is playing with more energy, control, and most importantly confidence.
No one, I mean no one, can shoot free throws. Who do I want shooting with the game on the line? One might think "a guard!" Well "a" guard is true. Kalin Lucas is shooting nearly 81%. Who else? Throw a dart. Of course if you hit a player, any player, you are more accurate throwing darts than the team is shooting foul shots.
To be fair Suton is shooting nearly 83%. Others of note?
Morgan: 67%
Walton: 51.3%
Roe: 44.6%
Walton is a guard. A starting guard. A senior guard. A team captain senior, starting guard.
Chris Allen is about 34% from behind the arc. The other 66% are airballs.
There is an outside** chance that the Spartans can be a #1 seed. It would require a lot of things to fall in place. At the very least MSU needs to:
1. Beat Purdue at home this Sunday
2. Win the B10 Tournament
3. Have some people lose. Preferably Duke, NC, Oklahoma, Pitt, and Uconn. All in the first round of their respective conference tournaments. For good measure Memphis and Kansas can lose too.
* Of course it isn't a pretty form tackle that Allen attempts. It is more like "oh shit that guy shouldn't be that wide open...oh shit that's my guy. Oh shit I have depth perception problems and I'm pretty sure I just ran into him. I managed to look like a drunk newborn baby giraffe on ice skates."
**Very far outside. Think: Respert against umm. Waaay outside.
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