Michigan Basketball: 3 Ways to defeat MSU without Isaiah Livers
Isaiah Livers has been upgraded from ‘out indefinitely’ to ‘day-to-day,’ but Michigan basketball must prepare for Michigan State without him in the lineup.
The Michigan State and Michigan basketball programs are not supposed to be on equal footing. Before a single game of basketball was played, the Spartans were showered with praise as the team to beat in the nation and have since fallen from grace, landing on the same tier as their southern neighbors.
Seniors Cassius Winston and Joshua Langford were supposed to bring another banner into the Breslin Center as two of the best on the court. That was the premonition until disaster struck in the exact same place it did less than 365 days ago. Langford, who was shooting over 40% from three during the 2018-19 campaign, suffered an injury to his left foot, the foot that removed him from competition after 13 games as a junior.
Isaiah Livers, who is equally, if not more important to Michigan’s offense than Langford is to MSU’s, will likely be missing the first contest between the two mitten powerhouses.
"You gotta humble yourself every now and then, eat a little humble pie. I've done that. But I'm not scared of anyone."
— Michigan On BTN (@MichiganOnBTN) January 4, 2020
- @JuwanHoward, on complimenting and facing Tom Izzo and the Spartans pic.twitter.com/bZUsBcEcaG
Considering Jon Teske spoke about Livers missing the game as a certainty, UM must prepare to go on with life without him – at least for the time being.
“It’s going to be difficult going in there playing without him, but we know we have the guys on this team to go in there and win,” Teske said. “And we’ve just got to stay connected and play smart and see what we can do.”
What Isaiah provided was 3.3 rebounds, a team-leading 13.6 points, and an almost unbelievable 50% from beyond the arc.
As the Wolverines leading scorer rides the bench, Michigan State isn’t missing theirs. Langford, in limited action, averaged 15 points, which wouldn’t have been enough to jump above Winston this year or last. Cassius is as advertised, with 17.8 points, six assists, and just over two rebounds a game.
While the Spartans rely on their point machine, Michigan will require these three Michigan men to step up in big game action tomorrow.