Michigan State Basketball: Wins against North Carolina, Notre Dame are critical
By Ian Olsen
Tom Izzo and Michigan State basketball will look to take down North Carolina and Notre Dame in non-conference play for long-term success.
If there have ever been non-conference games most crucial in Tom Izzo’s tenure, they may be the presumable November 26 game against North Carolina and the November 30 matchup against Notre Dame.
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These games will present a couple scarce opportunities for this year’s loaded team to accomplish what it’s capable of, build its legacy, and gain a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Determining early season rankings is difficult. However, traditional reasoning applied to predicting teams’ success, such as returning talent, is reasonably accurate. And beyond North Carolina and Notre Dame, the only other ranked opponent on the Spartans’ upcoming schedule is 14th-ranked Minnesota.
Concerning the excitement surrounding his team this offseason, Izzo didn’t downplay the hype but rather emphasized he and his players embraced the lofty expectations. With perhaps the most talented team of his career, Izzo can’t miss the opportunity to achieve as much as possible.
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The team cannot build a legacy without signature wins. So, after ultimately failing to win a tightly-contested battle with Duke, both North Carolina and Notre Dame give the team opportunities to gain those signature wins.
Media, coaches, fans and others consistently praise Michigan State by giving the team high preseason rankings ahead of teams of all major programs. Deserving those high rankings goes beyond out-competing Big Ten opponents. The team must beat opponents from competing conferences.
The likelihood of another Big Ten opponent becoming an elite team this season is questionable.
Northwestern was ranked in the preseason Top 25 after returning all of its players from last year’s NCAA Tournament team. But they are without a star player and already suffered losses to Creighton and Texas Tech at neutral locations. Wisconsin has a star player in center Ethan Happ, but the team is unranked with three losses.
Purdue, Maryland and Michigan may be other Big Ten teams more probable to strongly progress.
One or two teams may develop into elite teams and challenge Michigan State for the conference championship. Buy they may all be average with enough parity to enable the Spartans to run away with the Big Ten. If Michigan State loses to Notre Dame and North Carolina (or cedes the chance to play the Tar Heels), they not only lose chances to beat top teams in the regular season, they may lose their only chances.
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Another goal for this team should be gaining a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament. A main factor for the NCAA selection committee in determining seeds is strength of schedule. The team needs impressive wins now that it has the chance. Road wins against good teams are always impressive. But if none of their Big Ten opponents shine, the Spartans will be expected to win all their home games, with none of those home wins seeming impressive.