With high-flying dunks and long-arching threes, the Spartans advanced to their fifth Sweet 16 appearance in six years behind the acrobatics of Adreian Payne and the precision of Gary Harris.
An explosive first half from Harris followed by a dominant second half from Payne helped power the No. 3 seed MSU men’s basketball team (27-8) to a 70-48 victory against Memphis (31-5) at the Palace of Auburn Hills on Saturday.
Here are some of the keys and highlights from the victory, as well as a look ahead to MSU head coach Tom Izzo’s 11th appearance in the Sweet 16.
Player of the weekend: Senior center Derrick Nix. The Spartans’ lone senior made it clear — he does not want to go home, and has played like it in March. Nix followed up one of his best games of the season in the Big Ten Tournament’s semifinals with back-to-back strong performances to carry the Spartans to the Sweet 16. The big fella averaged 18 points and 11.5 rebounds this weekend, including a dominant 23-point, 15 rebound performance in the NCAA Tournament opener.
Play of the weekend: Junior center Adreian Payne’s block of a layup by Memphis forward Shaq Goodwin. With MSU’s lead cut to seven and freshman guard Gary Harris on the bench in foul trouble, the Spartans needed someone to lift the team. Payne did that with two blocked shots in less than two minutes, as part of a dominant second-half performance, where he totaled 10 points, seven rebounds and four blocked shots. After the blocked shot, MSU went on a 13-5 run to put the game away.
Key stat: 32 percent. MSU used lockdown defense to advance to the Sweet 16, holding Valparaiso and Memphis to a combined 32 percent shooting. The Spartans were especially proficient against Memphis, holding the Tigers to a season-low 48 points, the fewest points for a MSU NCAA Tournament opponent since limiting Florida to 46 points in 2003.
Breakout star: Gary Harris. He’s overcome shoulder injuries and back spasms to produce one of the best freshman seasons in MSU history, becoming the first Spartan to win the Big Ten Freshman of the Year award.
Harris might have been at his best in the 70-48 victory against Memphis on Saturday, scoring a career-high 23 points, the most by an MSU freshman since Shawn Respert in 1992. Harris broke the game open with four first-half 3-pointers, and is now one shy of former guard Chris Hill’s MSU single-season freshman record for threes with 66.
Looking ahead: The Sweet 16 features a matchup of two of college basketball’s most successful NCAA Tournament active coaches, with Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski as someone MSU head coach Tom Izzo often has described as the sport’s standard bearer.
MSU is 1-2 in the NCAA Tournament against the Blue Devils, with its sole victory coming in 2005 against former guard J.J. Redick. Duke features a dynamic trio of forwards — Ryan Kelly, Mason Plumlee and guard Seth Curry — who likely will be the responsibility of centers Derrick Nix, Adreian Payne and guard Keith Appling.
Whichever group can combine to win that matchup will likely advance to the Elite Eight, with MSU freshman guard Gary Harris also serving as an X-factor.
Quote of the weekend: “It’s never easy for us. It’s just the way our team is, and I’m just happy to get away with a win against a good team.” — MSU head coach Tom Izzo
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