Michigan State basketball: 3 bold predictions vs. North Carolina

Michigan State basketball will see No. 1 seed North Carolina on Saturday evening. What can we expect from this Round of 32 showdown?

The second-round matchup with No. 1 seed North Carolina is right around the corner for Michigan State basketball, so we all know what that means. It’s time to make some bold predictions.

The Spartans are going to need some things to go their way if they’re going to advance to the Sweet 16, so hopefully they’ll get fortunate and see some of these predictions come true.

1. AJ Hoggard flirts with a triple-double

I don’t know if it’s just me, but I get very confident in AJ Hoggard during the tournament. Throughout the season he seems to have issues with his motor and focus from time to time, but that never seems to carry over into the Big Dance. Last season, he played extremely well in the Spartans’ three tournament games and he also had a great showing in their win over Mississippi State.

I think he’s going to take it to the next level on Saturday.

Hoggard is going to show up in a big way and get close to a triple-double. I’m not going to predict he gets there, that’s too bold even for me, but his performance in this game will still be legendary. Give me 13 points, eight assists, and eight rebounds for Hoggard in this one.

2. Spartans win the rebounding battle

At one point this season, Michigan State was an atrocious rebounding team. The Spartans still aren’t great, but they have been much better. In their first-round win, the Spartans out-rebounded Mississippi State by six. If MSU wants a chance in this game, they’re going to have to find a way to do something similar again.

The Tar Heels are No. 13 in the country averaging a +7 rebound margin per game. MSU, on the other hand, is No. 163 with a +1 margin. This number has been slowly rising for Michigan State, but they haven’t played a team like North Carolina.

I do have some confidence in this prediction because of the way they rebounded on Thursday. MSU crashed the glass aggressively all night and also grabbed 11 offensive boards. I haven’t seen the Spartans attack the rim any harder all season, so hopefully they bring that intensity again.

3. Michigan State starts fast – again

Another thing MSU’s struggled with this season is starting games poorly. Countless times this team has been down double digits before you even blink. They can’t afford to do that against North Carolina.

Against Mississippi State, they came out firing and got off to a 20-8 lead. This gave the team a nice cushion, so even when their offense struggled the Bulldogs still weren’t able to make the game all that close.

I predict the Spartans will get out to a similar fast start which will put the pressure on the Tar Heels. I predict MSU will start hot again and take an early 13-4 lead forcing UNC into an early timeout.