Tom Izzo and Chris Beard are set to face off against each other once again in the NCAA Tournament. The last time the two X-and-Os masterminds coached against each other, it was at the 2019 Final Four in Minneapolis. Beard got the best of Izzo, beating the Spartans 61-51 en route to the National Championship game.
Six years later, the two will square off in the Sweet 16 in Atlanta, 80 minutes away from San Antonio. The second-seeded Spartans (29-6) used a strong defensive second half to get by New Mexico in the Round of 32. 17 fast break points to New Mexico’s three was the key for the Spartans to avoid the upset in Cleveland.
Meanwhile, sixth-seeded Ole Miss Rebels (24-11) certainly impressed in Milwaukee, surviving a furious second-half rally from North Carolina in the Round of 64 before beating the brakes out of third-seeded Iowa State in the Round of 32 on Sunday night. While Ole Miss may be seeded lower than Michigan State come Friday, the veteran-laden Rebels are no underdog.
With that being said, take a look at three keys for a Michigan State Spartan victory as they look to punch their ticket to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2019.
Don't control the glass, pound the glass
Michigan State is among the top defensive and offensive rebounding teams in NCAA Basketball. Meanwhile, Ole Miss ranks 226th in defensive rebounding percentage and 313th in offensive rebounding percentage, according to BartTorvik. While Ole Miss held its own on the boards versus North Carolina, they were out-rebounded by Iowa State 34-29. While the Rebels made up for that gap on the offensive end, shooting 58% from the field and 58% from three, Michigan State’s perimeter defense, which ranks first in the country, will cause troubles for the Rebels offensively.
If Michigan State wants to create separation on Friday, they must not control the glass but rather pound the glass, both offensively and defensively. There’s no question the Spartans will hold sturdy on the perimeter. After all, it’s their defensive identity. But can they generate second-chance points on the offensive end behind Jaxon Kohler and Coen Carr? Can they ensure that Ole Miss -- which hung 91 on a stubborn Iowa State defense -- gets only one shot per possession? If they can do that, they should be in good shape on Friday.
Frontcourt emphasis: Exploit Rebels' lack of size
While Ole Miss doesn’t have a lot of size in their frontcourt, the Rebels make up for it by switching one-through-five and even countering with pick-and-roll drop coverage with Malik Dia. It helped Chris Beard engineer a monumental defensive turnaround, ranking 141st in KenPom defensive efficiency last season to 21st this season.
But opponents still shoot over 50% from two against Ole Miss. While it’s not a crazy high number, it spells blood for Michigan State, who has a clear size advantage over the Rebels with Jaxon Kohler, Xavier Booker, Carson Cooper and Szymon Zapala leading the charge in the frontcourt. Ole Miss’ tallest player is Malik Dia, who stands at 6-foot-9. Freshman John Bol, who is 7-foot-2, has gotten in a few times this season but hasn’t seen any action yet in the NCAA Tournament.
Transition buckets: Sparty’s identity
While Michigan State may cause havoc on the defensive end of the floor, the core of the 2024-25 Spartans’ identity lies with transition buckets. In a way, these two come hand-in-hand. Michigan State loves to force turnovers, allowing them to run on the open floor.
26.6% of Michigan State’s total FGA has come in transition, according to Hoop Math. And they shoot almost 60% when they get out and run in the first 10 seconds of transition. That’s a deadly combination, but it will be hard against an Ole Miss team that does a good job of taking care of the basketball behind Sean Pedulla and Jaylen Murray in the backcourt. The Spartans must find ways to force turnovers to get out and run in transition.