The Ole Miss Rebels will face off against the Michigan State Spartans on Friday in the Sweet 16. Head coach Tom Izzo and Michigan State bring in one of the best defenses in college basketball. They rank fifth in the country in defensive rating according to Kenpom . The key for Ole Miss will be whether or not they have the offense to beat the two-seed in the south region of the NCAA Tournament.
Ole Miss Vs the Challenge of Michigan State Defense
Ole Miss has played well offensively in the NCAA Tournament thus far. They scored 71 and 91 points in wins over the North Carolina Tar Heels and Iowa State Cyclones, respectively. Michigan State allowed 62 and 63 points in their first two tournament games against the Bryant Bulldogs and New Mexico Lobos. Therefore, something has to give between Ole Miss’ offense and Michigan State’s defense.
However, the Ole Miss offense is way better than the offenses the Spartans faced in the first two rounds. Bryant and New Mexico rank 178th and 75th in the country in offensive rating . As for the Rebels, they sit in the top 25 in offensive rating at 24th in the country, per Kenpom.
Ole Miss also played two top 50 rated defenses in the country in North Carolina and Iowa State. The Cyclones have the 11th best defense in the country based off rating. Meanwhile, Michigan State has yet to see an offense to the level of Ole Miss in March Madness. The Rebels alone have scored 70+ points in 15 of their last 16 games they have played in dating back to their loss against the Missouri Tigers on January 25.
Another way Ole Miss has done well on offense as of late is their ability to not turn the ball over. The have the best turnover margin in the SEC by a lot at +5.17. The next best one is Vanderbilt at +3.73. This in turn also leads to a good assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.57. That is the second best ratio in the SEC. Only Auburn has a better one. The ability to dominate the turnover battle within games has led to more offensive success and will be key to knocking off Michigan State.
Key Players for Ole Miss
Here are some of these players that have been big for the Rebels in the NCAA Tournament on offense. All-SEC third team guard Sean Pedulla has been a scoring machine for Ole Miss in March Madness. He scored 20 points in both games against North Carolina and Iowa State. During the tournament, he is shooting 48.1% from the field and 41.7% from three.
Jaemyn Brakefield came alive in the Rebels’ second round game against Iowa State. He finished with 19 points and shot 13-15 from the field, three-point line, and free throw line. It was one of the best games of the season for the senior foward. He is shooting a very efficient 56.3%.
Another player that came alive for Ole Miss against Iowa State was Malik Dia . He had 18 points while shooting 57.1% from the field. He is the Rebels’ leading rebounder and has 13 total rebounds in the NCAA Tournament.
Where to Watch
The Ole Miss Rebels and Michigan State Spartans will play against each other in the Sweet 16 on Friday, March 28. The game will tip-off at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Ga. at 7:09 p.m. EST. The game is available to watch on CBS.
The winner of this game will face off against the winner between the Auburn Tigers and Michigan Wolverines in the Elite Eight.
© Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The post Ole Miss Faces Tough Test in Michigan State Defense appeared first on Last Word On Basketball .