3 keys and a prediction for Michigan Basketball vs Michigan State

Another solid defensive effort

The thing that made the first loss to Michigan State so disappointing in my eyes was the fact that the Wolverines held MSU to 59 points at the Breslin Center and lost.

This Michigan State team isn’t dynamic on offense — far from it. The Spartans don’t really look to run and most of their offense is based on Joey Hauser and Tyson Walker shooting the ball.

Hauser scored seven in the first meeting but Walker had 14. Malik Hall also stepped up with 14 points off the bench but if Michigan could just have a repeat of that performance, the Wolverines would surely take it.

Michigan State tends to lose if Hauser doesn’t shoot the ball well and he only scored seven. The Spartans shot 31.6 percent from 3-point range and just 37.5 percent overall.

We’ll see if Michigan has the discipline on defense to do it again. The consistency from game to game hasn’t been there. The Spartans also haven’t been dynamic but they run their stuff well and that will be a challenge Michigan’s young guards will need to work through.

I thought the Wolverines did a solid job the first time and if they can get close to that effort Saturday night, I’d feel good about a Michigan victory.

Michigan basketball vs Michigan State prediction

The Wolverines are listed as a 2-point favorite according to Draft Kings. Michigan really needs this win to get some positive momentum and there’s no way Juwan Howard or anyone else wants to be swept by Tom Izzo and the Spartans.

As low as some points have been this season, that would be rock bottom for me. Yet, I think that Hunter Dickinson will put forth an inspired effort and score over 20.

I also think the Wolverines hit just enough 3-pointers to win the game, 68-63.