2010 NCAA Tournament: Round 2, Day 2

#5 Michigan State Spartans (25-8, 14-4 Big Ten) vs.
#4 Maryland Terrapins (24-8, 13-3 ACC)
NCAA Tournament 2nd Round, Midwest Region
Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena – Spokane, WA

Maryland didn’t play a great game, but they played an OK one. It seemed like they either slept in for the first ten minutes or were really nervous. Either way, the last 30 minutes of the game were pretty much all Maryland. Houston had one plan, drive to the hoop and hope for a foul. And even though the refs gave them plenty of calls, if the refs didn’t give them a foul, their offense was pretty much non-existent. Aubrey Coleman was as good as advertised, but did most of his damage in the first half. After Gary Williams got a good look at him, the Terps defense adjusted. Instead of trying to front him with a guard and have a forward close by, Maryland simply denied Coleman the ball in the 2nd half. At one point, Coleman went about ten minutes without scoring.

Meanwhile, the Terps asserted themselves inside. They dominated the glass, thanks in large part to Jordan Williams. I said on this very page that Maryland was going to need a special effort from him in order to win. They certainly got one. With two minutes to go in the first half, Williams already had a double-double. For the first time in years, Maryland has an inside threat that the opponent has little answer for. His 21 points and rebounding ability just begin to describe the way that Williams changed the game the other night.

Other than that, no Terrapin gave a consistent effort, but a variety of players chipped in. Greivis Vasquez had a rather quiet 16-point performance. There were a couple of big drives and layups to stop potential Houston runs. He also added seven boards and six assists. Despite 19 points, Landon Milbourne made a variety of defensive errors and disappeared from the game for long stretches. But like Williams, he was instrumental to Maryland’s 47-26 advantage on the boards. Eric Hayes added 11 and six, hitting a couple of key threes. Adrian Bowie and Cliff Tucker played well (I was especially happy with Tucker’s effort defensively). So all and all it was a good game. Maryland never really put the Cougars away, but just kept them at arm’s length until time ran out.

The Terrapins move on to play Michigan State, a team that Terps fans have seen a lot of the past couple of seasons. Twice in the last three years, Maryland has run into the Spartans in a preseason tournament. Three years ago it was in the Coaches vs. Cancer event at MSG. Two years ago it was down at in Orlando in whatever tournament Disney hosts. Both times Maryland was victorious. However, in the last meeting between these two in the tournament in 2003, the Spartans were good enough to eek out a one-point victory in the Sweet 16. That was the last time that Maryland has made the regional semifinals, and it’s a little ironic that it’s Michigan State that stands in their way once again.

As we all know by now, the Spartans are led by Tom Izzo. For my money, there are only two coaches that are better than Gary in gameday preparation and in-game adjustments: Izzo and Rick Pitino. And I’m starting to have serious doubts about Pitino (down 24-4 to California…yikes). Simply put, Izzo could have a bunch of high-schoolers, and I would still be worried about his team in the tournament.

Obviously Izzo doesn’t have a high-school team. He has plenty of talent, even though Michigan State comes in to the NCAA Tournament struggling and comes in to this game a little banged up. Delvon Roe plays for the Spartans on a bad knee that will probably need surgery at the end of the season. Chris Allen, who has been in Izzo’s doghouse and was suspended for the Big Ten Tournament, appeared to seriously injure himself in the first round game against New Mexico State. Kalin Lucas also went down for a little while with injury against the Aggies, but he came back and it didn’t appear to affect him during at 25-point performance.

The Spartans limped to the finish line in conference. Like I mentioned on Friday, Sparty won three of their last five regular season games, but those wins came against the worst the Big Ten has to offer (and two of the games very close). They then lost their first Big Ten Tourney game against Minnesota with Allen watching from the bench. In their first round tournament game against NMSU, Michigan State raced out to a 13-point halftime lead. Then they kind of fell apart in the 2nd half and needed a questionable lane violation call to finally put away the pesky Aggies. Michigan State won most of the statistical battles, but played poorly at crucial times in the game. MSU has been inconsistent for the last month or two, and the good and bad Spartans both showed up against New Mexico State.

However, it’s crucial to remember that this is the same team that was ranked #2 in the country at the beginning of the season and was in the National Championship game one year ago. Along with Lucas, Allen and Roe, MSU also has Raymar Morgan, Draymond Green, Durrell Summers and Korie Lucious. The Spartans are so talented that Lucious and Roe don’t even start. They’d probably be in the starting lineup for about 95% of Division 1 teams. Even though the Spartans don’t possess that huge 6’10” power forward that most Big Ten teams have, they have the tradition collection of 6’8” athletic forwards that Izzo loves (think the college version of Zach Randolph or Jason Richardson). This is the #1 team in the entire nation in rebounding margin as a result. This is a completely different team than Houston. Maryland went into their first game knowing they’d own the glass, but will go into this game knowing that they probably won’t.

The Spartans main weaknesses are from beyond the arc and at the free throw line. Allen and Lucas are their only real threats from deep, and the team as a whole shoots only 33.5%. At the free throw line, MSU is 68.2% as a team. Morgan, Green and Roe are all suspect at the stripe. The Spartans also tend to be careless with the ball (averaging around 14 turnovers a game). This again is a stark contrast to a Houston team that was one of the best in the nation at protecting the rock.

Maryland has to worry about Lucas first. He is the engine of this team. He leads MSU in points and assists. If Maryland can limit or frustrate him, the Spartans will fall apart. Without him, their big men don’t get the ball (except on second chances) and Michigan State becomes a team that relies on jump shots. With Lucas playing his best, MSU can do whatever they want offensively. And don’t expect the Terps to put up 89 points again. The Spartans play a typical brand of Big Ten defense, and usually allow less than 65 points a game.

Meanwhile, Maryland has shot poorly from three in their last few games. The Terps were only 4-17 against Houston, and most of the shots they missed were open. Chances are, given another chance at shots like that, Maryland will make many more threes. Vasquez has been rather quiet since the second Duke game, and I have a feeling he’s due for a 23-point or more effort. The question is who will help him.


Alright Greivis, here's your last chance to make a run deep into March.

There’s no way Jordan is going to have another 21 points, 17 board game. He won’t be the focal point of the offense, and if he is, Maryland is in trouble. The Terps are going to need Hayes, Mosley and the bench guards to step up and win this one. Even though MSU is scary talented, I’d still take Maryland’s backcourt over Izzo’s. The Williams-Milbourne-Gregory frontcourt needs to hold their own and not get dominated. It’s one thing to lose the rebounding battle, but Maryland can’t lose it by more than six or seven boards. The good news for Maryland is the health of Allen. Not only is he their best three-point shooter, but he is Michigan State’s best on the ball defender. Without him, Lucas will be forced to guard Vasquez. Lucas gives up five inches to Greivis (another reason he could have a breakout game). Plus, if Lucas exerts all his energy on the defensive end, then his offense will be hindered. Allen will probably play, but I doubt he’s able to register 20 minutes.

We all know by now that the so-called Bracket of Death has collapsed a bit. Whichever team wins this game is going to be rewarded with a contest in St. Louis against Northern Iowa instead of scary Kansas. Somehow, I expect Maryland to scrap across a win. There are too many health questions and chemistry questions surrounding the Spartans. Vasquez is going to do enough to get this team to the Sweet 16.

Maryland 68
Michigan State 64


As for the rest of the country, my bracket is entirely shot. Kansas sunk it, but it really doesn’t matter to me if it helps Maryland in the long run. Anyway, I’ve simply run out of time (mostly work related reasons), so I’m only going to be able to give scores for the rest of the 2nd round games. I’ll be back in full on Thursday, and I’ll hopefully get a chance to talk more about the Terps on Friday.

Wisconsin 57, Cornell 51
West Virginia 78, Missouri 67
Duke 71, California 58
Texas A&M 63, Purdue 52
Ohio State 73, Georgia Tech 65
Syracuse 80, Gonzaga 77
Xavier 63, Pittsburgh 58