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Spartans a threat even without Cleaves
Posted: Wednesday December 08, 1999 12:04 AM
By Albert Lin,
CNN/SI
As an alumnus of another Big Ten school it is painful to do this, but the time
has come to talk about Michigan State. The Spartans were extremely impressive in
waxing North Carolina last week, handing the Tar Heels their first home-opening
loss since ... 1928. We'd always thought Mateen Cleaves was the
reason for all their success -- despite his offensive shortcomings (read:
shooting), the point guard was, plain and simple, a winner. Now, with Cleaves
sidelined with a broken foot, we're finding out we've grossly underestimated his
teammates.
In previous years coach Tom Izzo built Michigan State around Cleaves and
a bunch of role players; the Spartans were obviously successful, winning 55
games the past two seasons. Now, however, some of those role players have
improved and Izzo has complemented the holdovers with new athleticism. Michigan
State is still a blue-collar team which prides itself on defense and hustle, but
the addition of freshmen Jason Richardson and Al Anagonye, and
transfer Mike Chappell, allows the Spartans to play either an uptempo,
fast-breaking game or the more traditional Big Ten bruising, halfcourt style.
Undersized (6'8") junior center Andre Hutson came to school as a
banger but has developed a nice low-post game, while 6'9" senior forward
A.J. Granger is stroking threes better than Jason Klein the
heralded shooter from years
past.
And then there's fifth-year senior Morris Peterson, who has suddenly
added a lethal jump shot to his arsenal of slashing moves. We scoffed when
others gave Peterson All-America consideration a month ago; now we think they
were right on target. Peterson may be the most potent scorer in the country, and
his insertion into the starting lineup could give the Spartans the go-to guy
they need -- a remarkable transformation from a recruit who was redshirted as a
freshman and was a defensive role player as a third-year
sophomore.
Michigan State's weak link is its lack of a quality backup for Cleaves, but that
hasn't proven too problematic. His absence has allowed some others to develop
their skills and gain experience in different roles. MSU already has a loss to
Texas and there will likely be more bumps along the way (i.e., an adjustment
period when Cleaves returns), but the Spartans should find their way to
Indianapolis.
 |
| Kenyon Martin, Sr., C,
Cincinnati |
|
We've always been impressed with his awe-inspiring hops, which mainly translated
into rim-rattling slams and crowd-awakening blocks, but his offensive game has
come along way. He's now a potent low-post scorer, adding a turnaround jumper to
his improved jumphook. And let's not forget offensive putbacks. Martin is
averaging 16.8 points, 8.4 rebounds and 3.4 blocks a game -- and should be a
bigtime power forward at the next
level.
|
 |
| HIGH FIVE SirValiant Brown: All-name team freshman leads George Washington to upset of
Maryland; averaging 26.8
ppg.
|
| HIGH FIVE Indiana: Bob Knight continues to do it with mirrors; let's see if
Hoosiers avoid last year's slide (10-9 after 13-2
start). |
| HIGH FIVE Ed Cota: Best passer in the nation dishes off a school-record-tying 17 assists against
UNLV. |
| HIGH FIVE Morris Peterson: Is there a shot on the court he can't
make? |
| RIDING THE PINE Frank Williams: Is there a shot on the court he won't
take? |
| RIDING THE PINE Syracuse: Beat a real team, then we'll
talk. |
| RIDING THE PINE Auburn: What ails the
Tigers? |
 |
| Cats scratched |
| A year ago it was in the running for Team of the '90s; now, Kentucky is
struggling. The Wildcats don't have consistent scoring from any position on the
floor, and we've always felt Jamaal Magloire -- who was hailed as a savior when
he pulled his name out of the NBA draft -- was overrated. Has the Kentucky
cupboard finally run
bare? |
| Zigging and Zagging |
| Gonzaga played top-ranked Cincinnati tough on a neutral court; this week the
Zags get Temple and then UCLA. We should know if they're for real by Saturday
night. |
| Cupcake week |
| Other than the Great Eight, most members of the Top 25 are stocking up on W's
this week. Might we see an upset or two as schools start heading into
exams? |
 |
| Great Eight, Tuesday/Wednesday, Chicago, various
times |
|
Three of the games are fantastic, the fourth is a dud (sorry, Temple and Gonzaga
fans). Kansas-Michigan State (Tuesday, 7 p.m. ET) -- Chance for Jayhawks
to see if they're the top-five team they're now ranked or the top-20 team they
were in preseason; Arizona-UConn (Tuesday, 9 p.m.) -- Arizona has
captured nation's attention while UConn has been quiet since season-opening
loss; Cincinnati-North Carolina (Wednesday, 9 p.m.) -- Bill Guthridge
said the 'Heels were going to run more; UNC will try to stop the Bearcats from
doing the
same. |
| Michigan State at Arizona, Saturday, 2 p.m. ET |
|
Both teams will be coming off bigtime Great Eight matchups. Arizona has a more
talented starting five and the homecourt edge, but don't count out the Spartans
and their
depth.
|
| Duke at Michigan, Saturday, 4 p.m.
ET |
|
Though the Blue Devils are ranked higher, both sides in this intersectional
rivalry -- which first gained prominence as the coming-out party for the Fab
Five -- rely heavily on freshman. Duke's three seniors should be the
difference.
|
 |
|
In the tradition of last season's William Avery Watch, we return to
Tobacco Road to follow the trials and tribulations of another underachieving player whose improvement is crucial to his team's success.
This seven-footer grabbed one rebound in his last two games of the year (losses to Duke in the ACC Tournament and Weber State in the NCAA
Tournament), covering 57 minutes of playing time. |
|
1999-00 stats: 11.5 pts., 4.8 rebs., 3.7 blks. in 25.7 minutes per
game
|
| Disappeared in loss to Michigan State (though the defense had something to do
with that), scoring just four points (2-3 FG) with one rebound in 25 minutes.
And people are touting him as a top-five pick in next year's NBA
draft?
|
Come back every Monday afternoon for a new College Basketball Week at a Glance.
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