Michigan State basketball vs. UConn NCAA tournament tipoff: Matchup analysis and a prediction

• What: 3-seed Michigan State vs. 2-seed Connecticut, NCAA tournament East Regional semifinal

• When: Approx. 9:45 p.m. Friday

• Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.

• TV/Radio: CBS/Spartan Sports Network radio, including WJIM 1240-AM and WMMQ 94.9-FM; SiriusXM Ch. 201

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• Records/Rankings: MSU is 27-7 overall, finishing second in the Big Ten at 15-5, before falling in the first round of the Big Ten tournament. The Spartans are ranked No. 11 in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY Coaches polls. The Spartans are No. 11 in the NET rankings and No. 9 per the college basketball analytics site Kenpom.com. Connecticut is 31-5 overall, having finished 17-3 in the Big East regular season, before losing in the Big East tournament championship. The Huskies are ranked No. 7 in both the major polls, while being No. 10 in the NET rankings and No. 10 in Kenpom.

• Betting line: Connecticut -2

• Coaches: Michigan State — Tom Izzo is 765-309 in his 31st season as a head coach, all with the Spartans. Connecticut — Danny Hurley is 347-179 in his 16th season as a head coach, including 196-74 in his eighth season with the Huskies. He had previous head coaching stops at Rhode Island and Wagner.

• Series: MSU is 4-4 against UConn all-time, all since 1998, winning the two most recent matchups — on Thanksgiving 2021 in the Bahamas, and in late November 2017 at the PK80 in Portland, Oregon. They’ve also met in two notable NCAA tournament games — in the Final Four in 2009, won by MSU, and in the Elite Eight in 2014, won by the Huskies.

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Projected lineups

MSU

C (15) Carson Cooper (6-11) 11.0

PF (0) Jaxon Kohler (6-9) 12.6

SF (55) Coen Carr (6-5) 12.0

SG (6) Jordan Scott (6-7) 5.9

PG (1) Jeremy Fears Jr. (6-2) 15.3

Connecticut

C (5) Tarris Reed (6-11) 14.2

F (1) Alex Karaban (6-8) 13.3

G (11) Braylon Mullins (6-6) 12.1

G (1) Solo Ball (6-4) 13.0

G (2) Silas Demary Jr. (6-4) 10.6

• MSU update: The Spartans are in the Sweet 16 by way of wins over North Dakota…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/michigan-state-basketball-vs-uconn-201542252.html

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Publish date : 2026-03-26 20:15:00

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