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Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from blowout win over North Carolina

By Connor Muldowney

PORTLAND, OR - NOVEMBER 26: North Carolina Tar Heels forward Luke Maye #32, Michigan State Spartans forward Nick Ward #44, North Carolina Tar Heels forward Garrison Brooks #15 and Michigan State Spartans forward Jaren Jackson Jr. #2 battle for position in the first half of the game during the PK80-Phil Knight Invitational presented by State Farm at the Moda Center on November 26, 2017 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
PORTLAND, OR - NOVEMBER 26: North Carolina Tar Heels forward Luke Maye #32, Michigan State Spartans forward Nick Ward #44, North Carolina Tar Heels forward Garrison Brooks #15 and Michigan State Spartans forward Jaren Jackson Jr. #2 battle for position in the first half of the game during the PK80-Phil Knight Invitational presented by State Farm at the Moda Center on November 26, 2017 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) /
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The title game of the PK80 was an interesting one, on paper, but Michigan State basketball came away with a blowout win over North Carolina.

Tom Izzo was finally able to get the “he can’t beat Roy Williams” monkey off his back on Sunday as the head coach downed the North Carolina Tar Heels, 63-45.

Michigan State looked like a completely different team than the one that lost to Duke a week and a half earlier. They held the Tar Heels to just 45 points and a program-low shooting rate of just 25 percent. The defense stepped up in a big way and the Spartans improved to 5-1 on the year.

What did we learn from the Spartans’ victory over the Tar Heels on Sunday?

5. Rebounding has become a priority

Ever since that loss to Duke in which the Spartans were egregiously out-rebounded, Michigan State has made it a top priority to crash the boards. Against a talented North Carolina team with plenty of athleticism, rebounding wasn’t going to be easy, and the Spartans knew it.

However, it was clear that this was made a top priority in practice over the past couple of weeks with the infamous war drill as the Spartans finished with 52 boards to North Carolina’s 36. Yes, Michigan State out-rebounded the Tar Heels by 16. That’s impressive.

Not often will you see a Roy Williams-coached team give up that many rebounds, but Michigan State was the aggressor all night long and fought for every rebound. The Spartans often muscled some boards away from the Tar Heels. Nick Ward, Jaren Jackson Jr., Miles Bridges and even the guards were coming up with big rebounds.

If Michigan State can continue this barrage on the boards, the Spartans are going to be a nightmare for the entire Big Ten.

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