by jksander » Wed Mar 15, 2023 12:32 am
- Code: Select all
Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
12/30 @ Nebraska L 58-69 5-5 (0-1) D. Arnold (19 pts 16 reb 4 blk) P. Walker (11 pts 6 reb)
1/2 Illinois W 87-74 6-5 (1-1) S. Feeley (23 pts 6 reb 4 ast) J. Dillon (19 pts 4 reb 3 ast 4 stl)
1/6 @ Iowa W 80-60 7-5 (2-1) D. Arnold (21 pts 9 reb 1 stl 3 blk) P. Walker (19 pts 3 reb 2 ast)
1/11 Butler W 87-63 8-5 (3-1) D. Arnold (28 pts 9 reb 4 ast 3 blk) S. Feeley (17 pts 17 reb 8 ast)
1/16 Michigan W 78-68 9-5 (4-1) J. Dillon (19 pts 6 reb 1 blk) P. Walker (15 pts 6 reb 2 ast)
1/18 @ Ohio State W 74-67 10-5 (5-1) P. Walker (19 pts 3 reb 1 ast) D. Arnold (18 pts 3 reb 6 blk)
1/20 Nebraska W 91-71 11-5 (6-1) J. Dillon (17 pts 10 reb 3 stl) D. Arnold (11 pts 10 reb 3 ast 5 blk)
1/25 #24 Purdue W 77-69 12-5 (7-1) J. Dillon (20 pts 3 reb 1 ast) D. Arnold (12 pts 8 reb 1 ast 2 blk)
1/27 #24 @ Indiana L 53-60 12-6 (7-2) D. Arnold (8 pts 18 reb 1 ast 2 blk) J. Davali (10 pts 1 ast)
1/30 #24 #25 Wisconsin L 47-54 12-7 (7-3) P. Walker (16 pts 2 reb 1 ast) S. Feeley (17 reb 3 ast 1 stl 1 blk)
2/1 #24 @ Northwestern W 76-53 13-7 (8-3) D. Arnold (14 pts 14 reb 2 ast 2 blk) P. Walker (18 pts 3 reb 2 ast)
Heading into the final stretch of the Big Ten season, we’ve got five of eight remaining games on the road, so we’re not feeling comfortable that we’re in second place in the conference, just one game back of #24 Wisconsin. We’ve bounced back out of the poll, and we still have to beat the Badgers on the road, and they already defensively dismantled us at home. And none of the remaining road games will be easy wins. The one thing that is heartening is that our NET rating is a solid #10 nationally,
Bubble Watch: Wisconsin (17-4, 9-2) looks like they’re on track for a #4 seed in the tournament, while we’re on the edge of a #7 seed. Michigan (16-6, 7-5) and Nebraska (14-8, 7-5) are on the 8-line right now, and Ohio State (13-9, 6-6) is one of the last four in at this juncture. Butler (11-9, 7-4) is currently out (#88 NET) as are Illinois (11-10, 6-5, #99 NET), Penn State (10-10, 6-5, #131 NET) and Purdue (12-10, 5-8, #96 NET) barring late-season craziness. None of the other teams in the conference have winning records.- Code: Select all
Date Rank Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
2/6 Penn State W 74-57 14-7 (9-3) D. Arnold (19 pts 14 reb 4 ast 4 blk) B. Moravec (11 pts 3 reb 10 ast)
2/8 @ Notre Dame W 67-64 15-7 (10-3) D. Arnold (19 pts 12 reb 3 blk) J. Dillon (15 pts 15 reb 2 ast 2 stl)
2/10 Iowa W 80-58 16-7 (11-3) D. Arnold (17 pts 12 reb 2 ast) B. Moravec (17 pts 3 reb 8 ast)
2/15 #23 Indiana W 86-54 17-7 (12-3) B. Moravec (24 pts 3 reb 5 ast) P. Walker (19 pts 3 reb 2 ast)
2/17 #23 @ Minnesota W 79-90 18-7 (13-3) B. Moravec (18 pts 2 reb 4 ast) S. Feeley (15 pts 13 reb 3 stl)
2/20 #20 @ #18 Wisconsin W 73-66 19-7 (14-3) D. Arnold (21 pts 10 reb 6 blk) P. Walker (17 pts 3 reb 3 ast)
2/22 #20 @ Illinois L 70-78 19-8 (14-4) S. Feeley (12 pts 8 reb 6 ast 6 stl) B. Moravec (13 pts 2 ast 1 stl)
3/1 #18 Northwestern W 75-57 20-8 (15-4) P. Walker (19 pts 3 reb 3 ast) S. Feeley (11 pts 12 reb 2 ast 1 blk)
3/3 #18 @ Purdue L 58-70 20-9 (15-5) S. Feeley (14 pts 8 reb 2 ast 2 stl) P. Walker (10 pts 3 reb 2 ast)
Danny Arnold missed the final Norton cut, and will not be among the top ten players in the nation in that competition. He has, however, decided that one year was enough for him and he’ll be leaving for the NBA. He will be our only player leaving early barring transfers. Our two losses late in the race cost us the Big Ten title, with #15 Wisconsin winning it at 25-5 (17-3). We’re in second, followed by #24 Michigan (22-8, 13-7) and Nebraska (18-12, 11-9) who won a three-way tie among Butler (15-14, 11-9) and Penn State (15-14, 11-9) in the fight for that last double-bye. Illinois (15-15, 10-10) is right on the edge of postseason eligibility, but will need to win at least one game to stay so and the whole tourney to feel comfortable.
Bubble Watch: As of right now, we are in the tournament alongside Wisconsin, Michigan and Nebraska. Penn State looks pretty far off the bubble unless they win it all to convince the committee, though a couple wins could help even with a title loss. Butler, Illinois, Purdue and Indiana would probably need to win the whole thing, and Ohio State, despite the #108 NET ranking, would definitely need to do so, though they may still eke out a postseason bid outside the NCAA Tournament. Notre Dame (13-18, 6-14, 251 NET) should not expect a repeat of last year’s miracle, considering they’re playing out of the 13th seed and would have to win five straight.
Big Ten Tournament- Code: Select all
Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/9 (10) Minnesota W 65-56 21-9 D. Arnold (22 pts 19 reb 5 blk) S. Feeley (12 pts 9 reb 3 ast 4 stl 2 blk)
3/10 (3) Michigan L 83-96 21-10 P. Walker (23 pts 5 reb 2 ast) D. Arnold (21 pts 9 reb 2 ast 2 blk)
Wisconsin and Michigan faced off in the title game and the Wolverines won out 76-71, becoming the first Big Ten team to punch its ticket.
Big Ten Teams in the NCAA Tournament:
Dayton: (12) Nebraska - plays into Detroit region
East Rutherford: (4) Michigan
Detroit: (4) Michigan State
Albuquerque: (3) Wisconsin
If Nebraska wins its play-in game and then gets past (5) Oregon we’d potentially face them in the second round. Arizona (31-1) is the top seed in Michigan’s region and seems primed to return to the title game yet again if things stay chalk.
Penn State, Butler and Purdue all are in the CBI Tournament.
NCAA Tournament- Code: Select all
Date Opponent Score W/L Record Leaders
3/16 (13) Stony Brook W 88-74 22-10 D. Arnold (25 pts 11 reb 3 blk) P. Walker (25 pts 6 reb 3 ast 1 stl)
3/18 (5) Oregon L 65-70 22-11 D. Arnold (21 pts 6 reb 3 ast) S. Feeley (19 pts 9 reb 2 ast 6 stl)
Nebraska lost its play-in game to LSU by a 72-79 margin. Penn State and Purdue both advanced in the CBI Tournament -- the Nittany Lions beat TX San Antonio 80-74, and the Boilermakers had a killer defensive game against East Tennessee State 57-47. Michigan blasted (13) Jacksonville State 87-64 on Thursday while we won our game with relative ease despite not being as big a blowout. Wisconsin, meanwhile, barely held off (14) Purdue-Fort Wayne 74-72, and they’ll have to play better than that if they’re going to survive deep into this tournament. Of course, it’s hard for me to talk when we lost to Oregon in a similarly tight fashion in the second game of the tournament, bringing our run to an end outside the Sweet Sixteen and snapping my streak just a game shy of reaching my 500th victory. Michigan advanced with an 84-75 victory over (5) Texas A&M, but Wisconsin stumbled against (6) Virginia, losing another tight one 78-83.
In the CBI Tournament Purdue won a tight matchup against Marshall 76-75, while Penn State blew past Eastern Michigan 85-71. They will have to play each other in the CBI Semifinals, ensuring a Big Ten team will at least compete for the title.
In the Sweet Sixteen (4) Michigan had to face (1) Arizona and as expected they were absolutely no match for the marauding Wildcats, falling in the end 62-82.
Purdue beat Penn State 58-52 in the CBI Tournament Semifinals, earning a spot in the title game against Vanderbilt. They promptly crushed the Commodores 82-67 to take home the CBI Championship, though I’m sure they would have rather been playing in NCAA Tournament games instead.
In the Final Four, (2) Kansas stunned (1) Arizona 74-69, while (4) Dayon won a shootout against (4) UNLV 102-84, making it back to the Finals for the first time since we beat them there two years ago. And in a stunning upset, the Flyers won their first title in school history by knocking off the Kansas Jayhawks 79-74, becoming the first Mid-Major to actually take home the title!
Team Leaders
Scoring: Danny Arnold (14.6 ppg) Philipp Walker (14.3 ppg) Sam Feeley (9.9 ppg) Bohdan Moravec (9.3 ppg) Jaraan Dillon (9.2 ppg)
Rebounding: Danny Arnold (10.5 rpg) Sam Feeley (8.3 rpg) Jaraan Dillon (6.5 rpg) Philipp Walker (3.2 rpg)
Assists: Bohdan Moravec (5.3 apg) Sam Feeley (2.8 apg) Jaraan Dillon (2.0 apg) Philipp Walker (1.8 apg)
Steals: Sam Feeley (2.3 spg) Jaraan Dillon (1.5 spg) Kyle Thomas (1.0 spg)
Blocks: Danny Arnold (3.2 bpg) Sam Feeley (1.3 bpg)
Graduating Players
None. All our recruits are due to transfers and remaining scholarships from last season.
Leaving Early
Danny Arnold (3.4 GPA) 14.6 ppg 10.5 rpg 1.5 apg 0.4 spg 3.2 bpg (31 starts)
Dalron Cantrell is very likely going to transfer. He has been a disruptive force with the team all year, and after his redshirt season never managed to get into our lineups much despite our lack of depth, mostly due to his getting into constant arguments with his teammates. We’re going to have a team of veterans back next year and if he’d rather be elsewhere I can’t say I’ll miss his attitude.
Awards
Big Ten Freshman of the Year: Danny Arnold
1st Team All Big Ten: Danny Arnold
2nd Team All Big Ten: Sam Feeley
Tim Davis won National Coach of the Year for the fourth time.
Wisconsin’s Tyrone Lemeke won Big Ten Coach of the Year again for Wisconsin.
Commmitted Recruits -- Final List
6’0” 201 lbs SG Andrew Green (HS Senior, Munster IN) 3.1 GPA (#25 Ntl #4 Reg) 23.8 ppg 4.6 rpg 1.9 apg 2.3 spg 0.8 apg
6’2” 205 lbs PG Rodney Bey (HS Senior, Venice FL) 2.8 GPA (#39 Ntl #12 Reg) 21.6 ppg 5.2 rpg 5.1 apg 3.7 spg 0.6 bpg
6’9” 278 lbs C Karel Plesnicar (HS Senior, Slovenia) 2.4 GPA (#58 Ntl #5 Reg) 16.1 ppg 12.6 rpg 1.9 apg 3.8 spg 5.3 bpg
6’8” 223 lbs PF Chris Washington (HS Senior, Proctor MN) 18.0 ppg 8.5 rpg 4.2 apg 2.3 spg 2.2 bpg
We’ve extended Justin Smith’s contract as Associate Head Coach for an additional year, giving him a $127,050 contract for three seasons. He just turned 29 and is starting his sixth year with our program, having risen from third assistant. The remainder of our staff’s contracts will remain unchanged. I, meanwhile, will be starting my 19th season as a head coach at the Division 1 Level, my 11th here in East Lansing. I’m a win away from my 500th overall, and I’m just eight wins away from my 300th here at Michigan State. I’m starting to contemplate how long I will want to deal with the day-in day-out year-round grind of college coaching, but right now I’m really enjoying my time mentoring these young players, and I’m not ready to hang up my whistle yet.
The Big Ten continues to shift toward a completely mid-west lineup, in what the league hopes will be the final realignment. Nebraska will be heading back to the Big 12, which is sending Iowa State to the Big Ten as a natural rival for Iowa. Meanwhile, Penn State will be heading to the Big East, with Marquette coming into the Big Ten as a natural rival for Wisconsin, Northwestern and Minnesota.
Last edited by
jksander on Wed Mar 15, 2023 2:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.