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Sweet 16 – East Region – 6:30pm EST (TBS)
(7) Michigan State Spartans (21-12) vs (3) Kansas State Wildcats (25-9)
The Wildcats enter the Sweet Sixteen as the top seed in the East Region after handling business against Montana State and Kentucky in the first 2 rounds.
While the David vs Goliath upset of Fairleigh Dickinson over 1-seed Purdue has been the talk of the Tournament, the Spartans just shocked Shaka Smart‘s 2-seeded Marquette Golden Eagles.
And a Shaka shocker it was indeed.
Michigan State now enters this matchup overflowing with confidence and advanced metrics comparable to the higher seeded Wildcats.
Kansas state has the slight advantage on the defensive end, but the Spartans have been a more efficient unit offensively.
The key battle of the game will be a true strength-on-strength matchup.
Michigan State boasts a 3-point percentage that ranks 6th in the NCAA (38.7%), while Kansas State excels at limiting opponents from the perimeter, ranking 15th overall defending against the three (29.7%).
Spartans senior Joey Hauser (younger brother of Celtics sharpshooter Sam Hauser) will need to continue his excellence from beyond the arc for Michigan State to advance. He ranks 12th in the nation in 3-point percentage (46.2%), doing so on a high-volume 158 attempts.
Tom Izzo and company keep their run going, and snag another victory to uplift the healing Spartans community once again.
PICK: Michigan State +1
BONUS PLAYER PROPS:
Tyson Walker (MSU) – Over 15.5 Points (-105)
Joey Hauser (MSU) – Over 2.5 3-Pointers (+115)
