In the final of the PK80 Tournament’s Victory Bracket, the defending champion North Carolina Tar Heels will face the Michigan State Spartans. Who will come out as the champion in the conclusion of this event?
TV schedule: Sunday, Nov. 26, 8:30 p.m. ET. ESPN
Arena: Moda Center in Portland, Oregon
The No. 9 North Carolina Tar Heels (5-0) have been somewhat under the radar after winning the national title last season. Part of it is due to a lack of lottery picks on the roster compared to their counterparts from Durham. However, that doesn’t matter much to Roy Williams and his team, both of whom just continue to win.
After using their offense to drop 100 points on Portland in the quarterfinals, it was the defense that propelled them past Arkansas in an 87-68 win. They held the Razorbacks to just 26 first-half points, and Luke Maye dominated down low with 28 points and 16 rebounds.
Kenny Williams outplayed his opponents on the perimeter, scoring 19 points. And in his third game back from injuring his hand from an incident involving a video game, senior point guard Joel Berry had 13 points in 34 minutes played. They might not be as physically imposing and as deep as last year’s team, but they’re more than a threat to be a repeat champion.
The team that could stand in their way later on down the road is the No. 4 Michigan State Spartans (4-1), a team that takes UNC’s place as the deepest frontcourt for the season. That depth has been tested with star player Miles Bridges getting a sprained ankle before arriving, forcing him to miss the first round game with DePaul and only playing a few minutes against UConn.
However, his absence has allowed other players to shine. If it wasn’t for Matt McQuaid and his 20 points on 6/8 shooting from distance, they would’ve very well lost to the Blue Demons. While it was the Spartans’ defense that allowed them to pull away from the Huskies, Cassius Winston had a monster performance, scoring a career-high 28 points. If these guys can continue to play at his level, the balance will prove dividends for Tom Izzo and the team later on in the season.
Michigan State could get away with not having Bridges in the first two games, but he’ll be sorely needed going against the Tar Heels. He’s likely to give it go, since the Spartans don’t want to suffer an early sweep to the Tobacco Road teams.
Even if he’s not at 100%, there’s enough depth to at the worst make this a competitive game.
Next: UNC vs. Michigan State by position
The key will be how the offense goes for the Spartans. If they struggle early on, UNC will have a good night. The health of Bridges will ultimately decide the final score of this game unless another hero waits in the wings for Izzo to deploy.
Prediction: North Carolina 80 – Michigan State 71