posted March 9, 2006 at 10:11 EST in NCAA F Articles

 

Spartans average at end

Things are going crazy in the Big Ten. Isiah Thomas was seen in Bloomington on Tuesday, perhaps angling for the Indiana Hoosiers’ head coaching job. The Ohio State Buckeyes, coming off a .500 performance in the 2004-05 regular season, are making a strong push for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. And two of the conference’s most storied teams are threatening to end the year with a whimper, not a bang.

The Michigan State Spartans and the Michigan Wolverines each finished the regular season at 8-8 straight up. The Spartans lost five of their last seven games SU and against the spread. So did the Wolverines; however, MSU is considered a lock for the Tournament. To feel secure about their invitation, the Blue and Maize could use a win over Minnesota in Thursday’s Big Ten tourney, being held this year in Indianapolis.

Tom Izzo’s Spartans are blessed with one of the top trios in the nation: guards Maurice Ager and Shannon Brown, along with center Paul Davis. All three have blossomed into bigger roles after reaching the Elite Eight last year. But it takes five players to get it done, and Izzo has had some problems fleshing out the frontline. Senior forward and defensive specialist Matt Trannon broke his jaw on Feb. 18 against the Wolverines; his replacement, freshman Marquise Gray, broke his right foot last week in a win over the Badgers. It appears freshman Goran Suton (2.8 points, 2.7 rebounds in 14.4 minutes per game) will be thrust into the starting lineup Thursday against the Purdue Boilermakers.

Whatever happens against the Boilers, Michigan State is almost certainly going to the NCAA Tournament. Izzo’s policy of playing tough non-conference schedules (this year’s opponents included Gonzaga, Arizona and Boston College) has boosted the Spartans to a No. 16 RPI and a No. 9 SOS. The Wolverines, meanwhile, can probably go ahead and get fitted for dancing shoes if they beat the Golden Gophers. Michigan has ridden crucial conference wins over the Spartans, Badgers and Fighting Illini to a No. 38 RPI and a No. 40 SOS.

It’s been quite the roller-coaster ride for Tommy Amaker’s boys. Coming off last year’s injury-filled trip to the NIT, the Wolverines were expected to struggle once again to make the big dance. Then they beat the Miami Hurricanes and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the non-con portion of the schedule, amassing a 16-3 overall record (10-4-1 ATS) to climb all the way back into the Top 25. But injuries have once again taken their toll. Junior swingman Lester Abram (11.5 points per game) has missed 11 of the past 12 games with foot problems, most notably a sprained left ankle, and senior forward Chris Hunter (7.0 points, 3.3 boards in 17.1 minutes per game) is out with a knee injury.

Much like the situation in East Lansing, the Wolverines’ injury woes are placing too much of the burden on their top players. Senior guard Daniel Horton has done the lion’s share of the work, carrying the club on his back with 17.7 points and 5.3 assists per contest. But while the Spartans are unsure when they’ll return to full strength, Michigan is expecting Abram to be in the lineup against the Gophers. Tip-off is at 2:30 p.m. Eastern Time on ESPN2, followed by Purdue-MSU at 5:05 p.m. Eastern. Comments or Questions? Email FaceOff@BetUS.com.