Hours from Michigan State vs. Davidson, the Madness is well underway

Upsets are abound as the Spartans get ready for tip-off against Davidson...

There are very few things in life that deliver as often and as consistently as the NCAA Tournament.

On Thursday, on the opening day of the Round of 64, six lower seeds won their matchups, with the highlight coming from 15-seed St. Peter’s, which stunned 2-seed Kentucky, 85-79, in overtime.

The outcomes we saw yesterday further highlight what Tom Izzo had to say earlier this week about ‘The Big Dance’.

“The best thing about the tournament is, of course, the first game is the hardest to win, and it’s always that way in any tournament,” Izzo said.

For Michigan State, the 7-seed in the West region, that first games comes against 10-seed Davidson. The Wildcats are an excellent shooting team, with the eighth-best three-point shooting percentage in the country. Davidson is also no stranger to playing Cinderella, having made a trip to the Elite Eight in 2008, led by the school’s most famous alumnus – Steph Curry.

“We need to worry about Davidson, because they bring some issues that we haven’t dealt with,” Izzo said. “They’re one of the Top 10 or 5 teams in the country shooting the three-point shot, field goal percentage. They move the ball very well, a little bit like Iowa. They run a lot of motion, so it’s not as easy to scout or as easy to prepare for for players.”

The Spartans have been pretty stout defensively throughout the season. Michigan State wore down on the defensive end towards the end of the regular season, but rediscovered the intensity they needed at that end in the Big Ten Tournament.

They’ll need that intensity against the Wildcats as well.

“The ‘Never Relax’ statement that I put on the board more than a few times during the year will be in full bloom this game, because if you relax you’re going to get back cut, you’re going to get curl cut,” Izzo said.

Michigan State’s head coach highlighted Davidson’s Luka Brajkovic, who won Atlantic 10 Player of the Year with the Wildcats this season. He’s averaging 14.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 blocks per game.

“It’s a very good, it’s a talented team. They’ve got some experience, they’ve got some seniors,” Izzo said. “They’ve got four guys [scoring] in double figures, they’ve got four guys shooting above 40 percent to the three. And of course Foster [Loyer] brings, not only is he playing well, but he’ll bring a lot of knowledge about Michigan State, and I think that’s reason’s for me to worry.”

What has been one of Michigan State’s biggest impediment’s – turnovers – is an area in which the Wildcats’ excel.

“They turn it over few times. They’re one of the leaders in that,” Izzo said. “It’s under 10 [per game], and I think that’s been Bob’s M.O. since he got there, which has been many years. So, he’s got experience, some of his players got experience, I’d say probably more than we have in that respect.”

Still, if Michigan State plays the way they are capable of, the way we’ve seen them play in wins over Purdue, Wisconsin, UConn and others, the Spartans have the talent and the experience at head coach to make a run in this tournament.

“We’re more worried about ourselves than anybody else, because getting some consistency and maintaining that is going to be a very big key for us,” Izzo said.

And it all starts with that first game.

“The first game is one that you’re players got to get used to playing, and everyone handles the tournament a different way,” Izzo said. “If you can get out of the first game, and you can get out of the weekend, then everybody – it’s just a coin flip.”