Michigan (15-9, 5-6) will host #9 Michigan State (19-4, 9-2) on Tuesday night. The game will tip off at 7pm and be televised on ESPN. This will be the only match up between these in state rivals this season, barring a match up in the Big Ten Tournament. Michigan State is led by point guard Kalin Lucas who averages 14.8 ppg and 4.9 apg. Raymar Morgan is not expected to play as he continues to battle an illness, click here for more on Morgan’s status. The Spartans have 3 players that average 9 points per game; Durrell Summers 9.7, Chris Allen 9.6, and Goran Suton 9.5.
Michigan is coming back home after losing a close game at Connecticut. The Wolverines played a strong game against the nations #1 team and look to build on the positives that came out of that game.
I would expect that Crisler will be a full house for this game and the Maize Rage should be out in full force.
We talked about the boiling point for a basketball team in the Purdue Preview. The good news is Michigan has been playing at or near the boiling point recently. They boiled in the second half of the Penn State game and during the entire Connecticut game. Let’s hope they can keep bubbling enough to launch them on a run to close the season and to get them off the dreaded Bubble Watch.
Obviously a win over a ranked Spartan team would help. What doesn’t help is that Michigan is 2-6 in their last 8 games. The good news is there are 7 games left before the Big Ten Tournament. So there is time to put that skid in the rearview mirror. With a win over the Spartans Michigan will have won 2 out of their last 3 and have 5 days to prepare for their next game at Northwestern on Sunday.
For us Michigan fans this is going to be a nerve racking stretch. The last time they played in the NCAA Tournament was 1998 and that seems like a lifetime ago. I have completely forgotten what it is like to have the excitement and anticipation that comes with a NCAA Tournament bid.
All we can do right now as take it one game at a time.
February 9, 2009 at 10:31 am
Big brother is done letting little brother win. GO BLUE!
February 9, 2009 at 11:58 am
It’s about time for this rivalry to heat back up. A Michigan win would go a long way towards that end… and more importantly, put them one step closer to the big dance.
February 9, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Rob and co.,
Michigan State is Actually ranked #9 now in both the AP and USA Today/ESPN Coach’s Polls. Also, I have a ton of “Beilein Believe” Maize T-Shirts I was wondering if any of you would be interested in buying them(for those that do not know, the profits go into my ‘Core Maize Rage organization’s account/budget + hopefully and potentially for my financing of
an UNOFFICIAL ROADTRIP TO Minnesota — for Michigan Men’s Basketball Away game against Minnesota @Minnesota). They are $5.00 for Students and $10.00 for General Public Non-Students. Currently in my possession I have sizes in Small and Large (I can get you other sizes, though, if that is necessary but my fellow ‘Core Maize Ragers and in
particular our Executive Board Officers want us to sell and therefore “get rid of” one’s
inventory that they have first, before getting the shirts made in other sizes so it might
take a little while but ultimately it won’t be a problem). Let me know who is
interested, what size[s] you want, and what your Street/Residence Mailing Address is (I have no problem mailing them to you), you can also pay by Check (write it out to me). THANKS!!!!
VERY SINCERELY,
WOLVERINE
p.s. If you have any questions/comments, etc. feel free to post them on this thread or email me (Rob knows my email address and you, Rob, have my permission to give it out to your friends/”Regulars” (the latter on here as posters)!!!!
February 9, 2009 at 9:43 pm
scUM is DEFINETLY not big brother in basketball. Get ready for T-Walt to shut down your precious Manny Harris. Time for this skid to return scUM basketball to where it belongs- the bottom of the Big Ten and (hopefully) a chance at the NIT again.
GO GREEN!!!
IZ-ZO!!!!!
February 9, 2009 at 10:22 pm
Izzone, the fact that you even came here and wasted you’re time saying that proves that Michigan basketball is back, and your scared…get used to the feeling.
February 9, 2009 at 11:11 pm
Izzone: Thanks for the insightful commentary.
February 10, 2009 at 9:30 am
Big Game tonight…I hope Michigan plays well.
February 10, 2009 at 3:33 pm
Wolverine, I would love a shirt, Email me at ryan.millard@Murraystate.edu
February 10, 2009 at 10:41 pm
“Izzone, the fact that you even came here and wasted you’re time saying that proves that Michigan basketball is BACK”
BACK TO THE NIT
February 11, 2009 at 11:24 am
thetruth, if you were any kind of sports fan you would know that rebuilding takes more than a year, I’m looking at the big picture.
February 11, 2009 at 4:22 pm
*Joe*,
you have to forgive *thetruth*. You see he is a Stupid Sparty. In addition to being a typical Sparty when it comes to a lack of an education and Overall I.Q., apparently sPARTIES don’t have the cognitive ability of Memory/Memorization. I find it extremely funny that *thetruth* would have the nerve and the audacity to talk about the NIT when he seems to forget that Tom “Psycho” Izzo went to the NIT AND FLAMED OUT IN THE 2ND OF THE NIT, his two Seasons as Michigan State Head Coach (that would be 1995-96 and the 1996-97 for you sPARTIES who seem to have a very short and selective memory) before making his 1st NCAA Tournament appearance in his 3rd Season: 1997-98. By the way, *Joe*, did Alex Laird ever communicate with you in terms of the “Beilein Believe”-shirts? If not, I can mail one to you, like I am going to do with *ryan*. Just let me know. THANKS!!!!
–WOLVERINE
February 11, 2009 at 5:03 pm
note: forgot to include the word “Round” after ‘2nd’. In other words the CAPS phrase should have read . . .
NIT AND FLAMED OUT IN THE 2ND ROUND OF THE NIT
–WOLVERINE