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March Madness – (7) Michigan State vs. (3) Oklahoma

Zack Garrison

by Zack Garrison in News

Updated Jan 17, 2018 · 9:40 AM PST

(7) Michigan State Spartans (-2, 134 o/u) vs. (3) Oklahoma Sooners

Coach Tom Izzo has led No. 7 Michigan State (25-11, 12-6 Big Ten) to 13 appearances in the Sweet 16 in his 20 years on the Spartan bench. Tonight, Izzo will look to get his team to the Elite Eight when they face the No. 3 Oklahoma Sooners (24-10, 12-6 Big 12) at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse (10:07 p.m. Eastern).

Despite all the March success over the last two decades, Izzo remains eager for more.

“The one thing I’ve always tried to do is never take success in this event for granted. I never want to feel like getting this far is normal, because it’s not normal. I tell the players, getting to this tournament is a privilege — one you have to earn — and the same’s true of any success you have after that”, said the coach.

Michigan State knocked out the No. 10 Georgia Bulldogs and No. 2 Virginia Cavaliers in the first two rounds of the tournament, and they are playing their best basketball at the right time, entering tonight’s tilt with six wins over their last seven games.

Guard Travis Trice came up huge in the 60-54 win over Virginia, scoring 13 of the Spartans’ first 15 points and getting his team out to an early nine-point lead that they never surrendered.

“It was [Trice’s] time to shine,” MSU forward Branden Dawson told the AP after the game.

Tonight, Trice and company will be facing an Oklahoma team that advanced to the Sweet 16 by taking down No. 14 Albany and No. 11 Dayton; neither win has the luster of the Spartans’ victory of Virginia, but the Sooners did have to take down Dayton in their backyard (72-66 in Columbus, Ohio).

Big 12 Player of the Year Buddy Hield had 15 points and five assists for Oklahoma, while his backcourt running mate Jordan Woodward nailed 9/10 free throws and wound up leading the team with 16 points.

Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger was happy with the way his team battled in a hostile environment, but he knows that facing Izzo and Michigan State will bring even bigger challenges.

“Guys that do what they’re supposed to do, they play good basketball, they run the floor hard, they’re very good defensively,” Kruger said about the Spartans. “They rebound the ball great.

These two programs have met four times and two wins apiece.  The Spartans are currently two-point favorites and the game total is at 134. Oklahoma is a solid team that’s well coached, but with the narrow line and Michigan State proving it can hang with the best in the nation, take Izzo’s crew and lay the points.

(Photo credit: U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Dylan McCord [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo has been cropped.)

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