ATLANTA– The No. 2-seeded Michigan State Spartans has an opportunity to punch its ticket to the Final Four with a highly-anticipated matchup against the No. 1-seeded Auburn Tigers.
These two teams have taken similar paths to reach the Elite Eight, overcoming double-digit deficits in the second half to beat an underdog in the Sweet Sixteen.
Also, both teams won their respective conference’s regular season title before losing in the semifinals of their conference tournaments.
This is the 11th trip to the Elite Eight for Spartans head coach Tom Izzo. Michigan State has had plenty of success under Izzo in this scenario, advancing to the Final Four on eight of 10 attempts.
MSU freshman guard Jase Richardson scored a team-high 20 points and four three-pointers in the Spartans’ win against Ole Miss on Friday. Richardson will need to continue to be an aggressive scorer and make a significant amount of shots from the perimeter for the Spartans to pull off the upset.
Bruce Pearl’s squad has a very balanced attack on offense led by Tigers senior forward Johni Broome.
In the Sweet Sixteen, Broome collected double-double No. 15 on the season, scoring 22 points and 16 rebounds to vault the Tigers over the Wolverines.
After Broome, the Tigers have four other players that average more than 11 points per game. Against Michigan, Tigers’ freshman guard Tehaad Pettiford stepped up, scoring 20 points and taking over in the final minutes.
MSU has relied on its depth all season, rallying around the motto “strength in numbers”. After shortening the rotation to eight players against Ole Miss, Izzo expects Spartans senior center Syzmon Zapala and sophomore forward Xavier Booker to return to the rotation to deal with Auburn’s size.
After the win over Ole Miss, Izzo is a perfect 10-0 against SEC opponents in the NCAA Tournament. However, the Spartans haven’t beaten a No. 1-seed in March Madness since the 2019 Elite Eight against Duke.
This will be the toughest test yet for the Spartans, as Auburn is a dynamic team that has had its sights set on a National Title.
Tip-off for Michigan State vs Auburn is scheduled for 5:05 p.m. at State Farm Arena.
