Michigan State Basketball: 5 keys to victory over LSU in Sweet 16

DES MOINES, IOWA - MARCH 21: Aaron Henry #11, Matt McQuaid #20, Cassius Winston #5, Xavier Tillman #23, and Kenny Goins #25 of the Michigan State Spartans stand on the court during their game in the First Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament against the Bradley Braves at Wells Fargo Arena on March 21, 2019 in Des Moines, Iowa. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

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DES MOINES, IOWA – MARCH 21: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans drives with the ball against the Bradley Braves during their game in the First Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena on March 21, 2019 in Des Moines, Iowa. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

3. Get out and run

When Michigan State forces teams to play at its pace, it usually wins. Unfortunately, the Tigers can score at as high a clip as the Spartans and they’re no strangers to running the floor, but Michigan State just needs to keep running, even though LSU can grow accustomed to that.

If the game slows down, it doesn’t favor Michigan State. The half-court offense hasn’t been great this season so even though LSU can run with the Spartans, the only way Michigan State is going to win is if it rebounds and runs like it’s been used to with bigs in Nick Ward and Xavier Tillman streaking down the middle of the floor.

Cassius Winston has been the general of this fast-paced attack and he needs to be in the right spots for the outlet passes and keep an eye on the floor for Ward or Tillman.

Even if the Spartans aren’t scoring on these fast-breaks, they need to at least wear the Tigers down by getting down to the other side of the court and gassing out the defense. Michigan State is built for this type of game with top-tier conditioning, but we will see if the Tigers are, too.

Get out and run and see if LSU can keep up.

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