SATURDAY, APRIL 3, 2010 at 6:07 PM EST on CBS
NATIONAL SEMIFINALS AT INDIANAPOLIS
No 5 Butler Bulldogs vs. No. 5 Michigan State Spartans
Bulldogs are currently -1½ -point favorites.
Butler Bulldogs (32-4, 18-0 Horizon)
Path to Final Four: Defeated UTEP 77-59, Murray State 54-52, Syracuse 63-59 and Kansas State 63-56.
Key Players Gordon Hayward, Shelvin Mack
Overview: The Bulldogs are making their first Final Four appearance in school history, having made an incredible run thus far against four of the tourney’s toughest teams. In round one they faced a strong, physical and explosive UTEP team, then Syracuse gave them a different look with their 2-3 zone, and Kansas State played tough man-to-man while possessing one of the tourney’s hottest backcourts. Through all of this the Bulldogs defense has been the key. Led by Willie Veasley, the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year, and Ronald Nored, the two combined with an all out effort holding the backcourt duo of Denis Clemente and Jacob Pullen scoreless for the first 25 minutes of the game en route to a 63-56 victory over Kansas State on Saturday. Gordon Hayward led the effort with a game-high 22 points while Shelvin Mack scored 16 in the win. The Bulldogs, who have now won 24 consecutive games, are allowing a stingy 56.5 points per game in tournament play and haven’t allowed to team to score 60 or more points in a single game since a 74-69 win at Valparaiso on Feb. 26. All they have to do is get past a hobbled Michigan State, who comes in as a five seed without their best player Kalin Lucas. The Bulldogs play extremely well together as a team, and have a balanced offensive attack. Five different players have led the team in scoring in the last 10 games.
Michigan State Spartans (28-8, 14-4 Big 10)
Path to Final Four: Defeated New Mexico State 70-67, Maryland 85-83, Northern Iowa 59-52 and Tennessee 70-69.
Key Players: Durrell Summer, Korie Lucious and Raymar Morgan
Overview: MSU is making its second consecutive Final Four appearance and its sixth in 12 years after a pair of Raymar Morgan free throws with 1.8 seconds left giving the Spartans a 70-69 win over a tenacious Tennessee squad on Sunday. Durrell Summers, who is averaging 22.5 points per game in the 2010 NCAA Tournament, led the charge with a game-high 21 points while Morgan posted his sixth double-double of the season, scoring 13 points and grabbing a game-high ten rebounds in the win. Head coach Tom Izzo is a virtuoso during this time of the season, no matter where his team is seeded or what obstacles are thrown their way, he just finds ways to win. The team is nowhere near 100 percent right now, yet they’ve pulled it out in close games to earn their second straight Final Four appearance. The Spartans biggest loss was when Kalin Lucas, their best player, ruptured his Achilles in a win over Maryland that saw backup Korie Lucious hit the game-winning three at the buzzer. Lucious along with Summers have really stepped up their play since Lucas’ untimely departure. The Spartans need to believe that Butler is the “real thing.” Butler will present the Spartans toughest challenge yet, but so far they’ve lived up to the challenge. Very few people expected them to be here since they were seeded fifth in two very tough regions, but here they are.
Both of these teams have had a quite a run, but Michigan State’s size, toughness and athleticism, particularly on the interior, will be too much as the Spartans behind the genius that is Izzo, wins this one by four.
Butler Bulldogs Basketball Betting Trends:
- Butler is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
- Butler is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Butler’s last 6 games
Michigan State Spartans Basketball Betting Trends:
- Michigan State is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games
- Michigan State is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.