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NCAA Tournament 2019: 5 top seeds that won’t win the national championship

By Brian Rauf

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 09: Grant Williams #2 of the Tennessee Volunteers high fives head coach Rick Barnes as he checks out of the second half of the game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Talking Stick Resort Arena on December 9, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Volunteers defeated the Bulldogs 76-73. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - DECEMBER 09: Grant Williams #2 of the Tennessee Volunteers high fives head coach Rick Barnes as he checks out of the second half of the game against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Talking Stick Resort Arena on December 9, 2018 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Volunteers defeated the Bulldogs 76-73. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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EAST LANSING, MI – FEBRUARY 02: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans during a game against the Indiana Hoosiers in the second half at Breslin Center on February 2, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI – FEBRUARY 02: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans during a game against the Indiana Hoosiers in the second half at Breslin Center on February 2, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /

Michigan State Spartans

The Big Ten regular season and tournament champs have been a tremendous story this season. Despite suffering injuries to almost all of their key players, this group has maintained their place among the country’s best teams.

But those injuries have to catch up with them at some point, right?

Cassius Winston might be the best player in the country not named Zion Williamson and Tom Izzo remains one of the best coaches in the sport. However, their offensive explosiveness has taken a dip since Joshua Langford went out with an injury and their depth took yet another hit on Sunday when Kyle Ahrens suffered another injury.

That essentially leaves the Spartans with six players who are consistently in the rotation and are getting spot minutes from another player or two. Given the grind of the NCAA Tournament and the teams they’ll face later in the tournament, that short bench will come back to bite them.

Michigan State also still struggles with turnovers at times (188th nationally) and rank among the bottom 10 teams in the country in forcing turnovers, meaning they rarely generate easy points in transition.

A healthy Spartans team may have been enough to overcome those shortcomings, but I don’t see it happening with their current roster.

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