Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast: MSU-Indiana Preview
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00:00For everything Michigan State, it's the Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast and the Michigan
00:18State Spartans on SI. My name is Brian Anthony Davis. Welcome everybody to another episode
00:24of Going Green. As always, we are here with Aiden Champion. Aiden is the beat writer
00:30for the Michigan State Spartans on SI and the host of the Michigan State Spartans Insider
00:35Podcast. So glad to be with you here today, A.C. Happy Monday.
00:42Yeah, happy Monday. How about that Super Bowl, huh? Who are you pulling for?
00:48Well, if I'm the host of a show called Going Green, I guess I had a root for the Eagles.
00:54I think I was just with everybody else in the country. There's no mistake. Everybody
01:01knows that I'm mainly a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, born and raised in that area. And it
01:07was just time to watch the Chiefs dynasty take a little bit of a pause. I'm not saying
01:14it's over. It's very hard for me to root for another Pennsylvania team, especially
01:19Philadelphia because if you're from either Philadelphia or Pittsburgh, you feel like
01:24they're in different states. But as far as everything goes, I've got a lot of friends
01:28that are Eagles fans. So I was pleased with the way that game went. I thought the Eagles
01:34played a very classy game of football and I was just happy. How about you, Aiden?
01:41Yeah, I was happy to see it. I'm not a fan of the Chiefs. I respect them. I respect what
01:48they've done in the past few years. But yeah, like you said, it was time for a change in
01:53the tides. It just goes to show how tough it is to win three straight and why no one's
01:58done it. So yeah, no, it was nice to see a change of pace.
02:03And I will say this, as a Steelers fan, it was not hard for me to root against the Chiefs
02:09again because four out of six, four Super Bowl championships in six years, they were
02:15on their way to tying it. I did not want to see that happen either. So that record is
02:21safe for my black and gold. But this is not about the Steelers. This is about the green
02:26and white. This is about the real green and white here that we talk about every single
02:32week and I'm glad to do so. Aiden is teaching me the ways of Spartan Nation and I am enjoying
02:38it so much. And I had a lot of fun watching the games last week, even in a losing effort,
02:45the game against UCLA. I watched that game. I had fun watching it until the end. I thought
02:51they showed some mental lapses, but I thought they showed a lot of heart in that game. And
02:57then watching the 25th anniversary of the 2000 team on Saturday, taking on Oregon. I
03:05mean, that was just a pure elation. So let's talk about those games, Aiden, and the state
03:12of Spartan basketball. Yeah, when we talk about Super Bowl, this is a team that's got
03:17championship aspirations of their own. It looked like, you know, those hopes were kind
03:22of in jeopardy there with a 14-point deficit at halftime against Oregon. I can imagine,
03:31you know, Spartan fans were probably thinking, can't go down like this after dropping two straight
03:36in LA. I mean, it felt like this was a must-win game and it felt like it was almost inevitable,
03:45honestly, that they, going into it, that they were going to win. I mean, considering Oregon,
03:52you know, was going into it with a losing streak of their own and the 2000 team was going to be
03:59there, Tom's record was still up for grabs, they were back at home where they hadn't lost,
04:07and then all of a sudden find themselves down 14 at half. And, you know, yes, the 19, or 19-9,
04:15the nine turnovers can be, that was a big factor, but, you know, Oregon just shot the lights out in
04:24that first half, 10 threes, and when that's the case, it's going to be tough to win. So,
04:30wasn't necessarily a huge surprise that they were down as much as they were,
04:36considering those factors, but when you talk about a tale of two halves, I mean, this
04:43was a complete tale of two halves, right? I mean, Spartans only had three turnovers in the second
04:52half, Oregon didn't make a three in the second half, they had 50 points in the first, Michigan
05:00State held them to 24 in the second, Michigan State had 50 points of their own in the second
05:06half, it was just two completely different games. There was a switch that was flipped in that second
05:11half. And yeah, it was good to see, considering the trip out to LA, that UCLA one was tough,
05:21I mean, they dominated the Bruins on the boards and still were unable to steal a win there, but
05:30I think, you know, that win spoke a lot to UCLA's success right now. I think it was more about them,
05:38I mean, Michigan State turnovers were a problem again in that one, but this is, UCLA is the hottest
05:44team in the Big Ten right now. And, you know, I think Spartans just happened to meet them at the
05:53wrong time. So, all in all, I thought this was a great response from Michigan State,
06:02an electric, resonant center crowd, it was fun to be a part of. They did so in front of the 2000 team,
06:14you know, of course, a member of that squad, Jason Richardson, his son,
06:19was a player of the game. Jace turned in a career high, 29 points, I mean, in his first start,
06:26you know, Jeremy Fierce sat out with an illness, they were without Xavier Booker who had an illness.
06:34So, you know, everything that was kind of factored into that, that was a great win for Michigan State.
06:43How important was it to actually go down by 14 and for this team to find a way to
06:51crawl out of it and climb out of such a deficit? Because I think you learn so much through adversity
06:58and you grow up in a hurry, but the upside is so much greater when you were able to climb out of
07:06that. So, this team could set themselves up after that mini, let's just call it a mini slide,
07:14and now that they faced just complete adversity, that they're able to go forward and you've got
07:22to feel confident about the last couple weeks of February and going into the tournaments now.
07:28Absolutely. You know, I've said before, you want to, you'd like, by the time the season's over,
07:35you'd like to look back and say that you won in as many different circumstances as you can,
07:43and this was one of those you'll be able to look back on and say, remember when we were down 14 and
07:49a half? Remember what we were able to do in that second half? Because, you know, I mean,
07:55I can only imagine that team, I mean, they said themselves, they were frustrated at halftime,
08:00and after, you know, dropping those two in L.A., which broke their 13-game win streak, and now
08:09you're sitting at a 14-point deficit at home, or you've played your best basketball,
08:14or you haven't lost. I mean, to have the mentality to know, or to think, you know what,
08:23enough of this, we're going to turn this around in these last 20 minutes, I mean, it just,
08:29it says a lot about this team, because that's what it is, right? It's mental toughness.
08:38It's being able to disregard, you know, all those other, all that noise,
08:45all that noise, lock in on the moment, treat halftime like it's a 0-0 gain,
08:54and just go from there. So, yes, it was really huge for them to win in the way that they did,
09:03because you learn so much in those certain, in those different situations, especially,
09:09you know, when you're in the, you're coming back from a sizable deficit, and which they
09:13weren't able to do, right, against USC and UCLA. I mean, they battled back in both games,
09:22UCLA even took the lead in that, Michigan State took the lead late in that game, and
09:29still weren't able to finish, but they did this time, and that's what matters most, is that,
09:37you know, there was improvement, there was clear improvement in that, in the second half. So,
09:46yeah, I mean, this was a huge win when you look at it that way, and one that will certainly help
09:53them come March, and, you know, as this month winds down as well, when we get into some really
10:00tough games here. Well, let's take a look at some of the stats. First of all, just one guy from
10:05Oregon that I've got to talk about here, Jackson Shelstad, was just lights out in the first half.
10:12He ended up with 22 total points for the game to lead the Ducks, but as you said on the Michigan
10:18side of the ball, Jace Richardson, 29 points, just five rebounds as well. He had that one assist,
10:27and there could be a case to be made for seeing him start so much more now, but we'll talk about
10:34that in tomorrow's episode, but when we look at the boards and look at how important it is to bring
10:41those balls down, Jackson Kohler, he had 12 rebounds in this game. That's pretty close to
10:48his season high, wouldn't you say? Yeah, I'd have to look at it, but it's right up there.
10:55That was huge. I mean, you know, we had been talking about,
11:00because Jackson was really dominating early on in the year on the boards. Recently, he had fallen
11:06off a little bit in that area, but for him to have the game he did, especially on the glass,
11:14that was huge. I mean, they out-rebounded Oregon 40 to 27, and that was another factor in that
11:25second-half turnaround, because they were losing the rebounding battle at halftime by one,
11:33so to have that 14-rebound difference in the second half was also huge,
11:41and I want to go back to Jackson Shelstad, who you mentioned,
11:47another huge reason they were able to turn things around in that second half was
11:52Jaden Akins, their veteran leader, took it upon himself to guard Shelstad in the second half and
12:00held him to four points, so that was huge. I don't think Jaden gets enough credit for
12:09his defensive ability, which is something he prides himself on, so that was great.
12:17And these are just, there were so many other performances you can look at. I mean,
12:27Jace was the story of the game, but this really was another just all-around team effort.
12:32Yeah, I'm glad you brought that up, because Jaden Akins was fourth on the team with
12:3710 points, did not really have as many assists as he usually does. He had two, but being like
12:44Kalou on to Shelstad, that's just so important for them in this game. 8-for-18 from three-point
12:51land as well, still that is under 50%, but a lot better than what you were seeing, especially
12:59out west when they were in California. One question I want to ask you about, when I was watching the
13:05California games, I noticed something that just caught my attention, and it was the shot clock
13:12violations. Is that something that it seems like they've cleaned up? Yeah, somewhat. There was one
13:23that I look back on in particular in the second half against Oregon,
13:28but that was surprising to see, especially there was one in that USC game that was really crucial,
13:46that was on Jaden Akins. I think we talked about that in the last episode, and then there was
13:53another one late in the game against UCLA.
14:00Have they cleaned it up necessarily? I would say it's probably still a problem,
14:10but I also think it's a little tough to say with them having been without Jeremy Fiers,
14:18because he's a big part of their offense and their ball movement.
14:24But that is a major area that, yes, they got to clean that up, but
14:33I was pleased to see that the turnovers went down in that second half,
14:41as I had mentioned before, but you're right, those two games in LA
14:48it was a little odd to see, because those were pivotal turnovers that did contribute mightily
14:57late in the game there in both those games. All right, so what is next for
15:06the Michigan State Spartans? They've got Indiana coming up and the possible record with Tom Izzo,
15:14so they can go ahead, he can go ahead and break that record, and we talked about this in the past,
15:22it kind of feels like that record is secondary to Izzo, or maybe actually third or fourth
15:28on his list of priorities, but would it benefit Izzo and this team to get that record out of the
15:35way, to not have it, just not have it hanging over? Yeah, I would say so. I don't think
15:45they are necessarily pressured by it, it's just one of those things that
15:51would be exciting to have, and if anything, it's motivating for them. I mean, they want to get it done
15:58for Tom, but yeah, what an achievement that would be, and how fitting it would be
16:07to do it against Indiana, of all teams. Of all teams, yes. But you know, Tom had said after
16:19Saturday's game that if he could trade the record for Bobby's national titles, he'd do it.
16:27That's what matters to him, I mean. You gotta love Tom. He's always quick with the quote.
16:36Oh yeah, but you know, regardless if he gets it, if he doesn't tomorrow,
16:46you know, he certainly is deserving of it, but I mean, they gotta do it, right? They gotta do it.
16:56Against Indiana on their home floor, and yeah, I definitely think it's a huge
17:05motivating factor for this team. All-time Big Ten wins, a Big Ten head coach.
17:15You know, it'd be special, it really would be. And it's so great to have a coach with such great
17:24character and no character flaws as far as any off-the-court news or anything like that. You
17:32know, Tom Izzo has been such a stable motivator for this team and just a great role model for
17:39this team, so it'd be so nice to see that record go his way by doing it his way with his team
17:47at home. So that's fantastic. Anything to worry about with the Hoosiers?
17:52Well, you know, I would say what they've got going for them above all else is their rebounding.
18:05You know, fourth in the Big Ten, I believe is what I last saw. Yeah, at a 37.4 rebounds per
18:21game, and a big part of that is their star player, their center, Umar Balo, who, you know,
18:32this is his third team. He was with Arizona and Gonzaga before that. He was a member of
18:38the 21-Gonzaga team that went to the NCAA championship.
18:44Former Pac-12 Most Improved Player, former Pac-12 All-Defensive Team Honorable Mention.
18:56You know, he's going to be tough, and Michigan State hasn't had to worry too much about
19:04centers yet. They have just, you know, not as much as they've had to worry about the guards
19:14they've gone up against, and this will be a big test. You know, Tom said it today that
19:21it will kind of test, you know, that need that they had in the offseason.
19:29They needed a big man. He went out and gets Shimon Zapala, and this will be a test for Zapala.
19:37You know, their seven-footer who has been solid this year, and,
19:44you know, he's going to need to have a big-time defensive effort because, you know, I mean,
19:52that's what a lot of games come down to is points in the paint and rebounding.
20:00So, they're going to have to win the battle in the paint, both scoring-wise and rebounding-wise,
20:07and I think they're up for it, and I think it's big that it's at home.
20:13Well, with guys like Jackson Kohler, Cohen Carr, those are guys that you could rely on
20:19in the paint along with Zapala, so I'm anxious to see how this goes. I missed
20:26Carson Cooper as well, so my apologies there. So, let's look at this. Five losses in a row for
20:33Indiana. They're 3-7 in their last 10, and they're 5-8 in the conference, so is it safe to say
20:40Michigan State goes and plays their game, dictates this game. They should go ahead and get that
20:46record for Tommy Izzo and move on in the conference. Yep, yep. Just can't overlook them,
20:55like we always say, when they're facing lesser teams. You know, this was a team, they had a big
21:03lead on Michigan the other night, another team that's rolling right now in the Big Ten. Jumped
21:10four spots in the AP pool today, but then they blew it at home too, and so
21:22you know, they'll be upset. They've got issues right now with their coach, so I think
21:32they're kind of got nothing to lose right now, so to go into the Breslin and try to spoil
21:39Michigan State's night, I bet they'd love nothing more than to do that, but I don't know. I just
21:48think Michigan State's got more to play for right now, and you know, I'm expecting them to play a
21:56really good game tomorrow. Like you said, just play their game, gotta limit the turnovers,
22:04and I think they'll be all right. This is the Michigan State Insider Podcast from the
22:09Fans First Sports Network. This is Michigan State Spartans on SI featuring beat writer Aiden
22:15Champion. Thanks so much for listening to Going Green. You've got to keep it right here to Michigan
22:20State Spartans on SI and Fans First Sports Network for all of your Michigan State news.
22:26We are going to have player interviews after the game. We're going to have a complete
22:30recap with Aiden as well, so keep right here for all of your green and white. For Aiden Champion,
22:37my name is Brian Anthony Davis. Thanks so much for listening to the Michigan State Insiders Podcast.