Michigan State got a much needed win in their first Big Ten Tournament game against Minnesota. It was a roster-wide solid performance.
Michigan State took on Minnesota in their first game of the big Ten Tournament . This was a win-or-go-home situation for the Spartans for the Big Ten Tournament and potentially for their NCAA tournament hopes.
The Spartans answered the pressure with a surprisingly balanced and deep performance from the entire roster.
Details of the Curve for this Game: There are no curves at tournament time. Minnesota may be the technically less talented team, but everyone changes at tournament time. Under talented teams become rock stars and incredible teams turn into duds. The grades at this time of year are just grades. Do as best you can while assuming everyone else is playing at a rockstar level of competition.
Offense:
The Spartans started slowly. A problem they have had intermittently all year. This time the slow start looked like an offense trying to do too much individually. Making it worse, the ball felt like it was force fed towards Cooper who simply could not convert on anything at the beginning. Even worse, Cooper drew two shooting fouls and could only go 1-4 from the line.
The offense finally came alive with the entrance of Xavier Booker. The five star recruit has been scoreless in his last two outings. In this game he had 4-points in less than 60 seconds on two slams. The first basket particularly was a well designed play to get Booker a basket. It seemed to wake the entire team up.
The bench started to carry this team. Beyond Booker, Tre Holloman hit a three from the corner and Jaxon Kohler had a spinning baseline move (that was admittedly out of control) for a bucket.
Tyson Walker and Jaden Akins finally woke up more than 12-minutes into the game. Walker had missed four shots and Akins had barely taken any. They combined to hit back to back threes to keep the score close with Minnesota.
The Spartans ended the first half just as streaky as they started it. The positives were the bench production and Jaden Akins finding his shot. Still, it was an inconsistent offense, largely because Tyson Walker was not converting and AJ Hoggard was playing fairly poorly.
The second half continued the bench’s key role. Jaxon Kohler found ways to turn his excellent footwork into actual baskets. It helped that Minnesota’s interior defenders were not as good as some of the players Kohler has been facing of late. It also helped that Izzo was clearly prioritizing putting the ball down low to try and pick up fouls on Minnesota’s big men. Notably, a philosophy he did not deploy at Indiana and it burned him.
Xavier Booker got extended run in the early going of the second half because Malik Hall was sidelined with three fouls. The potential is clear as he used his length to present himself for multiple inlet passes. Unfortunately, his lack of strength kept showing up as Minnesota knocked him around and kept him from scoring down low.
After a slow start to the game where Tre Holloman played more point guard than usual, AJ Hoggard showed up big. By the midway through the second half mark, Hoggard had 11 points to lead the Spartans. Except for a powerful drive in the first half, Hoggard got most of his scoring playing off the ball. The decision also seemed to spark Tre Holloman playing the point, who looked more confident driving the ball than he has in weeks (if not all season). This was a late season adjustment that at least temporarily seemed to work.
Michigan State used grit and some determination from its veterans to go on their game changing run. Jaden Akins had three defensive efforts (two rebounds and a strip) that turned into offense. Those effort plays on defense were matched by his heads up crashing of the boards for a put back dunk that looked almost like an alley-oop. Malik Hall also finally got going and it triggered a time out by the Gophers as Michigan State went out to an 8 point lead.
Despite a slow game for Tyson Walker he showed up in the closing stretch. The team was saved by Akins finding his shot, some timely scoring from AJ Hoggard and a solid performance from Holloman. But this team always needs Walker to contribute. Too often it’s late in the game, but in this game they needed it.
The final run by the Spartans was heavy on drives to the rim. The type of offense that helped them go 8-2 in one stretch of Big Ten play. Michigan State found ways to keep Minnesota’s big men out of their way, and maximized it at the end with fresh bodies.
In a game where Tyson Walker looked limited (though he still ended with 15 points) it took solid shooting across the roster to win this game. The team shot 55.6% from the field and a blistering 62.5% from three. This type of shooting may not be sustainable but it makes the Spartans incredibly hard to beat.
The offense still had moments of jankiness. The shooting covered some poor positioning and lulls. But 7 points from Kohler, 6 points from Booker and 9 points from Tre Holloman eventually carried this game. AJ Hoggard’s surprise 17 should also be mentioned. This offensive performance displayed the type of depth the Spartans were supposed to deploy all year to be one of the top teams in the league. The use of some unfamiliar players and lineups (and the attending rough edges) keeps this grade from perfection, but it still deserves some serious praise.
Offensive Grade: A-
Defense:
Minnesota looked like they came out prepared and ready to fight. Michigan State was left chasing solid ball movement and strategic action that left Gopher shooters open consistently. Minnesota started 3 for 3 because of it and it felt like the beginning of a long game.
The tenor of the game changed as the offense finally found some rhythm. The defensive effort fed off that and slowed Minnesota substantially. Michigan State forced Minnesota to find their offense from the outside – a smart trade when it shut down Minnesota’s interior offense.
This approach worked until Mady Sissoko and Xavier Booker were paired on the floor. The Spartans lost Malik Hall to an early second foul and were forced to play a front court that looked overmatched on defense. The reinsertion of Carson Cooper didn’t stem the tied as he had a three hit right over him. The last of an 11-0 run by Minnesota.
Minnesota’s front court was in foul trouble by the 15 minute mark in the second half. Michigan State clearly was playing an attrition style of basketball to limit the Gophers best scorers. The concern was the Gophers were still leading at that point.
Similarly to the first time these teams matched up, when Michigan State started getting success limiting the front court, Cam Christie stepped into the mix and started hitting threes.
Rebounding started to make a difference in a good way (finally) for the Spartans. Carson Cooper corralled a few tapped around balls and Jaden Akins had three plays in a row where he rebounded or stripped the ball away. That effort on the glass gave Michigan State the lead.
Strategically, Michigan State seemed much more comfortable fouling Minnesota than they did against Indiana (a major complaint in that game that they did not adopt that strategy). It definitely took Minnesota out of its rhythm and made them earn their points at the free throw line.
As a whole the defensive effort by the Spartans was enough to win, but it was far from perfect.
Michigan State relied on the Gophers front court committing fouls to take themselves out of the game. The one major area the Spartans avoided was a monster performance from Cam Christie or Elijah Hawkins. The Spartans looked dedicated to containing the front court (even if they couldn’t stop Garcia’s 19 points) and it generally worked enough.
The Spartans were definitely helped by the Gophers poor free throw shooting (58%, 11 for 19). Considering how poorly the Spartans shot from the line, that could have been a problem.
Still, the Spartans survived with timely defense and a much much improved rebounding effort (advantage Spartans 30 to 23). And they get some credit that picking up fouls on Minnesota’s front court was clearly the strategy.
Defensive Grade: B+
Transition:
Michigan State found something in transition. Xavier Booker and Malik Hall were able to sprint down ahead of defenders and create an open lane to the basket for dunks. Jaxon Kohler had a similar situation thwarted by a poor Tre Holloman pass. The Spartans looked committed to pushing the ball and Minnesota looked slow to adjust. Shocking for any team prepared to play Michigan State.
Through the first possession of the second half, MSU was dominating in transition. The 11-3 advantage was key to the Spartans keeping the score close. The most impressive part of the transition was how much it was led by Michigan State’s big men. Xavier Booker contributed, Malik Hall had an open court dunk and even Carson Cooper worked himself open sprinting down the court.
Tre Holloman spread the bench impact to transition. Holloman has a knack for pushing the ball and he displayed it on a great rebound and long pass ahead to AJ Hoggard. It was a key moment to answer Minnesota trying to create a run out of Cam Christie’s three point shooting.
In a game where transition was the difference for Michigan State it showed up late. As Minnesota got flustered, Tyson Walker had a huge steal that turned into an AJ Hoggard layup.
The final statistics credited Michigan State with 19 fast break points to Minnesota’s 6. The Spartans were fast to get back on transition defense and looked for opportunities to push the ball down the court. Maximizing this element of the game allowed the Spartans to score with a high percentage and turn an all too evenly matched game into a ten point win.
Transition Grade: A
Coaching:
The first coaching decision for Tom Izzo is the same as its been for weeks: who do you start at the center position? After going with Mady Sissoko for 20+ games and experimenting with Xavier Booker, the Hall of Fame coach goes with Carson Cooper. This feels like a move exceptionally late in coming. Cooper didn’t have the big leap most were expecting this year, but he has been playing more minutes than most of the other centers. He does not have the upside that Xavier Booker does with the three point shooting, but Cooper is the most reliable center this team has. It may be late, but the decision to actually go with the basic option here is the right one.
In a complete departure from anything the Spartans have done this year, the first substitution off the bench is Xavier Booker for Malik Hall. This showed a clear dedication to getting Booker on the floor, even at the expense of one of the most consistent players Michigan State has had all year. It immediately led to a set play for Booker that was a slam. It was a real spark with a strategy focused on a player’s skill set. One play later Booker rewarded Izzo’s faith again by getting a dunk in transition.
Izzo went deep into his bench almost immediately. After the first media timeout, Tre Holloman and Jaxon Kohler were inserted. A few plays later Coen Carr entered the game. The Spartans were 9 deep in less than 7 minutes of game time. This is experienced tournament management of your personnel. It helped that the bench players were scoring as well.
Izzo both utilized his bench by choice and out of necessity. Malik Hall’s foul trouble opened up more time for Xavier Booker. In the first half this set Booker up for scoring. After a scoring outburst though, Booker mostly got swallowed up by Minnesota’s physically stronger front court. The two by choice were Tre Holloman and Jaxon Kohler. Kohler had some quality minutes and a few excellent offensive moves.
The special result was Tre Holloman. The sophomore answered the bell in a way that gives hope for next year. He looked like the better point guard over AJ Hoggard and found ways to get multiple people involved. It didn’t hurt that he was also scoring. In a game where Tyson Walker looked uncharacteristically unengaged, it was crucial to get this performance and Izzo was willing to ride Holloman.
Izzo showed more faith in his bench than he has at any point this season. He was willing to ride Xavier Booker (to early positive results and late non-negative results), and clearly had faith in Jaxon Kohler who played down the closing stretch. He was also willing to deploy Tre Holloman at the point and use that to unlock AJ Hoggard a bit. These were signs of growth from a coach that is too often criticized for playing the most conservative rotation.
Combine his (seemingly) new found faith in the bench and a clear strategy of getting fouls on Minnesota’s frontcourt and the coaching deserves some credit. Emotionally turning this team around from the defeated unit that lost late to Ohio State and Indiana in the final seconds of those games into a viable tournament team also deserves some credit.
Coaching Grade: A
Overall:
The Spartans looked like a tournament team. I don’t just mean a team that deserves to be in the NCAA Tournament (I’m still not convinced that beating Minnesota changes the eye test on that issue – but that’s for a later column). I mean a team that played like it was a tournament.
Teams that thrive in tournament settings find multiple ways to win. They rely on depth and players stepping up. They find ways to overcome one problem by pivoting to a new approach. From Tre Holloman’s excellent play at the point, to Jaden Akins rediscovering his gritty approach, to an actually collectively decent performance by the bigs (it should be noted Sissoko played just 1 minute in this game) this game felt like a team adapting to tournament time.
Tyson Walker and Malik Hall did just enough in limited nights to help carry this team down the stretch. That’s another aspect of tournament teams – their best players delivering enough.
Michigan State still looked flawed at points and covered a lot of sins (namely their poor free throw shooting) with some hot shooting overall. Their effort though in transition and on the boards are what gave them this win in the end. That top to bottom effort is what gives this team a positive grade overall.
Overall Grade: A-