The Michigan State Spartans are prepared to return to action against fellow Michigan rivals, the Western Michigan Broncos. While MSU will be the much superior team, the Broncos have put up good numbers within their conference.
However, the Broncos have been on the unlucky side as far as their record goes this season. Going into the game with MSU, the Broncos sit at 3-8 and will be major underdogs against the Spartans. But crazier things have happened in the world of college basketball.
Within the MAC, the Broncos have been stellar on defense this season. Allowing their opponents an average of 73.5 points per game, they sit fifth among the rest of the MAC in that statistic. It will be a tall ask for them to limit the Spartans, though, who have averaged 82.2 points on the season.
While the two are in very different conferences, the Spartans have had much more success on offense than Western Michigan has. But looking at how the Broncos compare to their conference, the Broncos have other ways to beat you.
Among the conference leaders, Western Michigan sits in second in average rebounds per game. Averaging 39.1 rebounds per game, the Broncos won’t let MSU have any chances to catch its breath when it comes to both offensive and defensive rebounds.
Western Michigan senior forward Owen Lobsinger has led the team all season long in terms of rebounding. Lobsinger averages seven rebounds per game, which ranks him second among the rest of the MAC players in that category. Lobsinger will be a name for MSU to try and keep the ball away from.
The leading scorer for the Broncos this season has been junior guard Markhi Strickland. Strickland has averaged 12.5 points per game for the Broncos this season, and while that number sits on the lower end for players MSU have had to focus on, Strickland is a player the Spartans need to be prepared for.
While MSU has put together a strong start to the season, the Broncos possess enough talent that could lead them to a victory. Safe to say, though, that MSU coach Tom Izzo won’t let his players play with any less aggression, regardless of how the two teams match up on paper.
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