Michigan State will host San Jose State in a non-conference basketball matchup on Thursday evening.Michigan State enters the game with a 2-0 record, while San Jose State is currently 0-2.Lansing State Journal’s Graham Couch predicts Michigan State will win but expects a hard-fought game.Couch notes that San Jose State’s roster may struggle with defense and perimeter shooting against Michigan State.
Michigan State basketball will be hosting another kind of Spartans on Thursday night. So which Spartans does Graham Couch of the Lansing State Journal think will win?
The Michigan State Spartans will be hosting the San Jose State Spartans in non-conference matchup on Thursday evening from the Breslin Center. This battle of the Spartans will tip off at 6:30 p.m. ET and be televised on the Big Ten Network.
Michigan State comes into this game with a perfect 2-0 record so far this season. The Spartans’ picked up a notable win over previously-ranked No. 14 Arkansas in their last game, and will now look to build off that in this next non-conference tilt.
San Jose State has yet to pick up a win this year, with the Spartans sitting at 0-2 so far this season. They dropped their opener against Utah by only nine points and also played NCAA Tournament hopeful UC Santa Barbara to an 11-point defeat in their first two games this year. So they certainly should bring some challenges to the Breslin Center on Thursday.
So does Couch believe the Spartans will stay unbeaten on the year with a win over San Jose State on Thursday? Yes he does, but he thinks it’ll be a hard-fought game for Michigan State — here’s a bit of his analysis and reasoning:
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“Through two games, San Jose State has been quite a bit better on the offensive end than the defensive end, though, like their Spartan counterparts in East Lansing, they’re shooting less than 30% from long range. Colby Garland is a nice guard, who’s a solid mid-range shooter. He’s not much of a long-range threat, however. ….Tim Miles is a good coach. He does not have a roster likely to defend and defensive rebound at the level it would take to pull an upset. Nor do his Spartans shoot the ball well enough from the perimeter to win that way.”
You’ll need to read the full article on the Lansing State Journal to see his official breakdown and score prediction.
Click on the post below to read the complete breakdown and prediction from Couch for this matchup between Michigan State and San Jose State.
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