MSU Must Limit Illinois' Kasparas Jakucionis
The Michigan State Spartans are in need of a big win on Saturday as they travel to Champaign to take on the Illinois Fighting Illini.
MSU has lost three of its last four games and is in danger of losing a shot at the Big Ten title.
Illinois has not played its best basketball, but it will be looking for revenge against the Spartans, who they feel they were wronged against last month by the officiating.
The Illini have home-court advantage this time around, something they did not have when they lost by two in the Breslin Center. Will that make a difference? It likely will, although the Spartans cannot let it have too much of an impact.
One player who did not make much of an impact in the last game these teams played was Illinois guard Kasparas Jakucionis. The future first-round pick in the NBA Draft got in foul trouble and only played 9 minutes.
Jakucionis hit just one of the three shots he took, missing both 3-pointers. He should be much more impactful in this game as long as he stays out of foul trouble.
However, Jakucionis averages two-and-a-half fouls per game and has been called for at least two fouls in 18 games this season. He is a bit slow-footed and does not defend opposing wings well, so if MSU’s forwards can get a step on him, they could put themselves in a position to score or at least draw a foul.
It is not likely that Jakucionis will foul out of this game -- the previous MSU game was the only game he had fouled out of this season.
However, MSU cannot allow him to get going scoring the ball. He is the team’s leading scorer and can score in different ways, including connecting on 35 percent of his 3-pointers.
The Spartans have allowed too much dribble penetration in recent weeks. Jakucionis is tough to stop when he gets to the hoop, so Coen Carr and Frankie Fidler must play the best defense possible. Jaden Akins may also get a crack at defending the Lithuanian star.
MSU will get a tough game out of the Illini, and Jakucionis should have a major impact on the game if Tom Izzo does not plan for him heavily.
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