No. 21 Michigan State vs. No. 3 Arizona

Thursday, November 23
1:00 pm PT, Fox

The Spartans get the lion’s share of their production from just four players. Tyson Walker, Malik Hall, Jaden Akins, and A.J. Hoggard dominate the minutes played and scoring categories.

Walker is a 6-foot-1, 185-pound senior guard who averages 23.0 points per game. Hall puts up 10.0 points per game while Akins scores 9.8 and Hoggard puts up 8.0.

That’s not much of a variable offensive attack. In many ways, Tom Izzo’s team is entirely dependent on Walker putting up points.

Enter Kylan Boswell.

It’s been a minute since Boswell has been set free to go toe-to-toe with an opposing point guard.

Duke’s offense primarily went through its big and Arizona has dispatched cupcakes that didn’t have the backcourt to challenge the UA sophomore.

Averaging 1.4 steals per game, Boswell should be motivated for the defensive challenge.

And if Michigan State runs action that forces Boswell off of Walker, Tommy Lloyd has an entire crew of hungry defenders to take over the duties.

Caleb Love and Pelle Larsson both play strong defense and can create turnovers. KJ Lewis comes off the bench and plays with similar defensive intensity, too.

In other words, Arizona has the answers for Walker. And Lloyd’s team gets up for big games.

Look for the Wildcats to come out highly motivated on defense to shut him down and the three other MSU scorers. Only Hall has the size that could make matters difficult for the Cats.

Yet, at 6-foot-8 and 220 pounds, Lloyd can put Keshad Johnson on him like glue. Even Larsson could handle the task if Johnson gets in foul trouble.

Of all the high-major, ranked programs that Arizona is facing this year, Lloyd and his staff must be looking at this MSU roster with wry smiles.

And that’s without even getting to the offensive side of the court.

Arizona has six players averaging in double-figures and can score in a variety of ways. With two 7-foot centers that have a healthy rotation, the Cats can get the ball inside to score in the paint.

With Johnson on the wing, Arizona can force a mismatched power forward out to the perimeter and either score from three or blow by him for a finish in the paint.

And with a position-less crew of guards that can play either the one, two, or three, the Wildcats have the backcourt to realistically put up 100 points against the Spartans.

Oh, and did I mention that Michigan State doesn’t have an adequate big to slow down Oumar Ballo or Mo Krivas? It’s a mismatch nightmare for the Spartans.

The lone flaw in the Wildcats, though, is their turnover propensity. Lloyd’s rosters have always hemorrhaged the ball and this group is no different.

What distinguishes this year’s version of Arizona from the previous two is its defense. This isn’t one of those soft European defenses that UA was saddled with over the last few years.

This group features three Americans who start and an intense true freshman from El Paso who comes off the bench.

Look for Arizona to create turnovers, score in transition, dominate the glass on both sides of the ball, and share the rock better than they have all season.

The Spartans are about to find out why the Wildcats are the No. 3 team in the country.