Michigan State Basketball: 5 bold predictions for Elite 8 battle with Duke

Michigan State Basketball: 5 bold predictions for Elite Eight battle with Duke

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 29: Gabe Brown #13 of the Michigan State Spartans celebrates a three point basket against the LSU Tigers during the first half in the East Regional game of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

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WASHINGTON, DC – MARCH 29: Zion Williamson #1 of the Duke Blue Devils reacts against the Virginia Tech Hokies during the second half in the East Regional game of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

3. MSU will hold Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett under 20 points each

How do you guard Duke’s freshmen? Zion Williamson, RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish have caused problems for defenses all season long and that’s not going to stop for as long as they’re wearing the blue and white.

However, they can be limited.

There’s a chance Reddish will be out for Sunday’s game as he didn’t play against Virginia Tech with a ‘knee issue’ but if he does play, you can expect Aaron Henry or Matt McQuaid to size him up. Those two will split duties between Reddish and Barrett and they’ll do a great job of forcing tough shots.

We can expect Xavier Tillman to spend plenty of time on Zion but he’s a much more difficult player to defend. If anyone can do it, it’s Xavier.

Michigan State’s improving defense will keep both Barrett and Zion under 20 points on the game and that’s a winning recipe for any defense.

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