In a rare late-season non-conference matchup, Michigan State and Georgetown head to Madison Square Garden for a showdown of Big East, Big Ten basketball. Continuing to roll through their respective conference, the Spartans are down two key players that might make this game more difficult than assumed.
Senior Adreian Payne has been out since early January after suffering a foot injury. Branden Dawson has missed the past two games for a hand injury. That leaves the Spartans without two strong starters midway through the season. Both have put up big numbers before getting hurt. Payne and Dawson had combined for 26.4 points and 16.4 rebounds per game.
Without them, Matt Costello has help, putting up career-high numbers with 11 points and 12 rebounds in an overtime win against No. 15 Iowa. Denzel Valentine and Travis Trice also put up big numbers, totaling 21 points and hitting five 3-point shots. The Spartans have found ways to step up after the injuries, keeping them in the mix of the top-ten teams.
Not only is Michigan State finding ways to win, but they are doing so on the road. While being 9-2 at home, the team is undefeated on the road. Four of those victories have come on neutral courts. That will certainly help as the hit the road for a marquee matchup on a neutral court.
The Hoyas have lost five-straight and could really use a bounce-back win. They had standout wins against Kansas State and VCU, both on the road, but the past three weeks have not been kind to Georgetown. The Hoyas are trying to avoid their first six-game losing streak since 2003.
The team's defense as been allowing opponents to shoot 40.0 percent from beyond the arc during the losing streak after only allowing opponents to shoot 27.5 percent during their first set of games. In their most recent loss, the Hoyas were outscored 22-8 at the free throw line while losing by five in the end. Facing the ranked Spartans will certainly make gaining any momentum very difficult.
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