Goran Suton may have found the answer to his “inconsistency.”
In the past two games, the junior center has averaged 15.5 points and 16 rebounds — showing an overall dominance in every aspect of gameplay.
Suton emerging as scoring, rebounding threat
Junior center Goran Suton pulls down a rebound Nov. 14 against Louisiana-Monroe. Over the last two games, Suton has averaged 15.5 points and 16 rebounds per game.
“Having a good game doesn’t hurt you, it builds your confidence,” he said. “It’s a matter of doing it again and doing it again and keeping it going.”
Suton said he hopes to make it three breakout games in a row when the Spartans tangle with Jacksonville at 7 p.m. Saturday at Breslin Center.
“I need to keep the same mentality I’ve had in the past two games and stay aggressive,” he said.
Head coach Tom Izzo said he knew Suton was capable of showing positive consistency.
“You and I and everybody that are Spartan fans have been waiting for that,” Izzo said.
“The guy has very good skills. It’s just a matter of him putting more into it. He’s a great guy … I need him to be a little meaner, a little tougher. I’m starting to see a little more ambition.”
Junior guard Travis Walton said “G is a star in the making.” But sometimes, Walton said he has to rough Suton up for him so he doesn’t start getting complacent.
“Once he competes, he can play with anyone in the nation, but sometimes you’ve got to get a little physical with somebody to get them to do what you want them to do,” Walton said while laughing.
In the starting mix
This season, Walton has been MSU’s sixth man in four out of the team’s six games — a role the guard is still developing into.
On Wednesday, Izzo started Walton, as opposed to freshman guard Kalin Lucas because of a decision to go with a veteran lineup against N.C. State.
“It wasn’t necessarily a promotion or demotion, but I thought Travis did a great job,” Izzo said. “There is no doubt that Travis is one of the best defenders in this whole league, maybe one of the best defensive guards in the country.”
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Walton said his recent improvement comes from watching and guarding Lucas at practice.
“When I see him push the ball at me, I gotta push it back,” Walton said. “If I gotta stay here 24 hours, I’m going to learn how to push the ball like him.”
Izzo said he doesn’t know if Lucas or Walton will be the permanent starting point guard. He will review film of the game and talk to both players about it.
A healthy Neitzel
Izzo said when Drew Neitzel is at full strength, the Spartans play a different brand of basketball.
At Wednesday’s game, there’s no doubt that Neitzel looked like a preseason All-American guard.
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“I’m feeling good,” he said. “It’s never fun playing out there when you’re dragging or you don’t have a lot of energy. So, it was a lot of fun feeling like my old self, running off screens, running the lanes, feeling fresh.”
Neitzel finished with 17 points and five assists — compared to his 3-for-9 shooting performance against Oakland on Nov. 24.
Who’s next?
The Spartans face Jacksonville (3-2) at 7 p.m. Saturday at Breslin. The Dolphins are an Atlantic Sun team on a two-game losing streak — losing to UAB and Georgia State.
“We haven’t talked about them too much, but I’m sure they are not a huge team, a lot of mid-majors,” Neitzel said after Wednesday’s game. “They’ve got smaller big guys. We’re going to have to adjust and contain them.”
Jacksonville’s leading scorer is 5-foot-10 guard Ben Smith, at 17 points per game. Forwards Lehmon Colbert and Marcus Allen lead the team in rebounding at 7.2 per game.
