Spartan Avenue
Fansided

Michigan State Basketball: 5 potential 2022 NCAA Tournament opponents

By Connor Muldowney

Mar 12, 2022; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo talks to his team in the second half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 12, 2022; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo talks to his team in the second half against the Purdue Boilermakers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 5
Next
Memphis Tigers center Jalen Duren celebrates his and-1 as the ball falls through the hoop after he is fouled by the Houston Cougars at FedExForum on Sunday, March 6, 2022.Jrca3529
Memphis Tigers center Jalen Duren celebrates his and-1 as the ball falls through the hoop after he is fouled by the Houston Cougars at FedExForum on Sunday, March 6, 2022.Jrca3529 /

2. Memphis Tigers (20-9; projected 9/10 seed)

Yet another team that is familiar with Michigan State fans, Memphis was enemy No. 1 this past offseason as Emoni Bates committed to Penny Hardaway and the Tigers after decommitting from Michigan State — and all it took was some Cheez-Its and Gatorades, apparently.

Bates hasn’t been with the team in months and Memphis is actually playing much better without the former five-star and No. 1 player in the country, making it to the AAC Tournament semifinal game against SMU.

Memphis went from 9-8 just a couple of months ago to 20-9 before Saturday’s AAC title game and that just goes to show that the change to the lineup may have been the breath of fresh air that the team needed. The Tigers went from (maybe) an NIT team to a lock to make the NCAA Tournament as a No. 9 or 10 seed.

The Tigers have two wins over Houston, Alabama, and Saint Louis and have an explosive offense that is ranked top-60 in scoring and No. 21 in assists per game. The rebounding is also solid.

Home/Spartans Basketball