3 Instant Observations from MSU's First-Round Win over NDSU
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BUFFALO, N.Y. --- No "upset alert" notifications were sent nationwide for this one.
Third-seeded Michigan State handled its business during the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, cruising past (14) North Dakota State, 92-67, behind a dominant first half.
MSU advanced with the win to take on (6) Louisville in the Round of 32 on Saturday. The Cardinals took down (11) South Florida earlier on Thursday, 83-79, leading big for a good portion of the game before staving off an admirable comeback attempt from the Bulls later in the game. The tip time for that game is TBA.
Here are a handful of takeaways, fresh off the final buzzer of the game:
Fears Racks Up Assists Early
Point guard Jeremy Fears Jr. was definitely in assist mode for this one early. He dished out nine assists in the first half alone and was perfectly content letting his teammates make all the shots (only scoring two points in comparison), as MSU dashed out to a 45-25 lead at the break.
Fears ended up getting a lot more rest than usual because of that big lead the Spartans built up. He ended up only getting two assists in the second half to finish his afternoon with 11, but backup point guard Denham Wojcik got to see a little more playing time than usual because of the large difference in the score.
Coooooooop
The Michigan State fans in attendance got plenty of opportunities to yell out "COOOOOOOOPPPP" on Thursday in Buffalo. Carson Cooper has already been a great story on development throughout his MSU career, and he played like the seasoned, blue-collar, senior center that he is. He ended up tying his career-high with 20 points to go with 10 rebounds.
NDSU didn't have much of an answer for Cooper, who kept putting himself in the right spots on offense. One possession, he'd maybe score off a pick-and-roll. The next, maybe he'd easily knock down that reliable mid-range jump shot that he added to his game this offseason.
Other bigs played well, too. They were going to be important against a much smaller North Dakota State team, and they showed up. Cam Ward provided some flashes, getting to the rim on offense and protecting it on the other end with a couple of blocks.
Jaxon Kohler also played his role pretty well. He knocked down some threes and also did a nice job cleaning up the glass in this one.
Perimeter Defense Locks Down
One of the biggest concerns entering the tournament had been the Spartans' perimeter defense. Each of Michigan State's last five opponents had made at least 10 threes and had combined to shoot above 40% from behind the arc.
That perimeter defense ended up being a reason why MSU built a substantial lead early. North Dakota State ended up shooting just 2-for-15 (13.3%) from deep in the first half. The Bison entered Thursday ranked 40th in the nation in three-point percentage, making 36.5% of their threes for the season.
Don't overlook the fact that the Spartans knocked down their own threes, too. MSU ended up shooting 10-for-20 (50%) from deep, while NDSU wrapped things up with a 6-for-25 (24.0%) performance itself.
Michigan State is going to have to keep this up in its second-round game against Louisville. The Cardinals' 13-for-25 (52.0%) day from three was the difference in their win over 11th-seeded South Florida. Louisville's Isaac McKneely made seven of those threes by himself.
A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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