Michigan State Basketball: Player grades for comfortable win over Michigan

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EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN – JANUARY 05: Cassius Winston #5 of the Michigan State Spartans reacts in the second half while playing the Michigan Wolverines at the Breslin Center on January 05, 2020 in East Lansing, Michigan. Michigan State won the game 87-69. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

Starters

Cassius Winston had the game of his career, Xavier Tillman wasn’t too far behind and the other three guys weren’t breakout stars, but they all played well. The starting five has been playing exceedingly well lately.

Cassius Winston: A+

I’m giving out the first A+ of the season to Cassius because, well, he was incredible. He had the best game of any Spartan this season and this looks to be a growing trend since Christmas break. He’s been absolutely on fire in the past four games — as well as the last four matchups with Michigan. He finished with a career-high 32 points and had nine assists on 11-of-19 shooting all while dazzling the Breslin Center crowd with circus layups, step-back jumpers, ankle-breaking moves and an all-around incredible performance. Just like that, the legend of Cassius grows.

Aaron Henry: B+

This wasn’t the best offensive game for Aaron Henry, but he showed some impressive moves, including a nice floater from the baseline with his off-hand. He scored six points and had eight rebounds with an assist and two blocks in 23 minutes. What made his performance even more impressive was his defense on Zavier Simpson — he didn’t give up anything easy.

Gabe Brown: B

Gabe Brown did more than miss a potential Sportscenter No. 1 play when he was fouled on a dunk attempt over 2-3 Wolverines — Tillman made sure to give him some grief after the game for that — but he finished with six points on 1-of-3 shooting and had six rebounds and a block. He needs to shoot more, but he had an overall solid game on both ends.

Marcus Bingham Jr.: B

Not a bad follow-up performance from Marcus Bingham Jr. after recording the best game of his Spartan career against Illinois. He actually scored this time with five points but he also added six rebounds and two blocks, giving him eight blocks and 18 rebounds over the past two games.

Xavier Tillman: A

While Cassius is playing his best basketball of the season, Tillman is quietly doing the same. OK, so maybe it wasn’t that quiet. He’s been on fire over the past few weeks and he finished Sunday’s game with 20 points, 11 rebounds, six blocks, three assists and a steak. Just like his performance against Illinois, he stuffed the stat sheet and he’s looking like the player we expected at the beginning of the season.

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