Michigan State basketball: 3 bold predictions vs. FAU

After starting the season 9-2, Michigan State basketball will head back to the Breslin Center on Saturday afternoon to face FAU.

While facing FAU seems like a daunting task after the past couple of years of elite play, including a Final Four two seasons ago, the Owls are a different team than the one the nation has seen in recent years. Dusty May has moved on to Michigan and the Owls lost a number of key players to transfer.

This is a much different program.

And yet, they’re no pushovers. The Owls are one of the top scoring teams in the nation, averaging over 86 points per game. On the other side, the Owls have struggled a bit defensively, allowing over 76 points per game.

FAU is riding a three-game winning streak and Michigan State is on a four-game winning streak. Something’s got to give on Saturday.

Let’s get bold.

1. Xavier Booker scores 15-plus

Xavier Booker is coming off a career-high 18-point game against Oakland on Tuesday and he now has four straight double-digit scoring games. After starting the season on a major slump, Booker has come on strong lately.

That’s going to continue on Saturday.

FAU won’t be able to match up well with Booker’s length and athleticism and inside-out game. He’ll continue his hot streak with 17 points and seven rebounds with two blocks on the defensive end.

2. Frankie Fidler has first true breakout game

When Frankie Fidler committed to Michigan State this past offseason, Spartan fans were expecting an elite scorer. Early on, it looked like he was on track to be just that, scoring in double figures in four of his first five games. Since then, he has scored over 10 points just twice in six games. He’s been in a bit of a slump with 13 points over his past three games.

Saturday will be his first big breakout game, scoring his season-high with 19 points and six rebounds. He’s finally going to look like the elite scorer that he was at Omaha last season and, who knows, maybe this will spark a rise to stardom.

3. Michigan State hits season-high for threes

Michigan State had one of its best shooting games of the season against Minnesota on the road and it feels like the team has kind of figured it out from 3-point range ever since. They’ve been shooting between 30-40 percent since Maui and that’ll continue to improve on Saturday.

The Spartans will hit 14 threes on one of the worst defenses they will see for the remainder of the season.

These guys will be battling early in the game to stay ahead, but they’ll pull away late to win 90-73.