Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from win over Cleveland State

EAST LANSING, MI - DECEMBER 18: Miles Bridges #22 and Joshua Langford #1 of the Michigan State Spartans react to a second half play while playing the Houston Baptist Huskies at the Jack T. Breslin Student Events Center on December 18, 2017 in East Lansing, Michigan. Michigan State won the game 107-62. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

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EAST LANSING, MI – DECEMBER 21: Matt McQuaid #20 of the Michigan State Spartans drives to the basket against Barry Ogalue #13 of the Long Beach State 49ers at Breslin Center on December 21, 2017 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images) /

4. Matt McQuaid can provide spark off the bench

A quiet 11 points doesn’t even begin to describe Matt McQuaid’s night for Michigan State. He came off the bench, lit a spark for the second unit and scored in double figures thanks to three 3-pointers. He looked like the player everyone wanted to see last season and the confidence might be growing.

At practice, his teammates go crazy every time he jacks up a 3-pointer because they know it’s going in. They want that to translate to game situations more often. It looked to be the case on Friday night against Cleveland State as he wasn’t afraid to look for his shot, making 3-of-6 from deep along with another mid-range floater/jumper.

McQuaid added three assists and two rebounds in 25 minutes and adds another scoring threat for the Spartans. If he’s able to gain confidence and make his shots consistently (40 percent from deep), teams will have to respect that and step out on him. In that case, he can dump the ball down to the post for some easy points.

Each game it seems like there’s a new role player stepping up, but McQuaid has been the most consistent of the bunch. He can provide a constant spark off the bench.

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