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#4 Michigan State
Spartans
Big Ten
2004-05: 26-7,
13-3, 2nd
2004-05 postseason:
NCAA
By
Joel Welser
It doesn’t sound too
good for Michigan State with the departure of four key seniors,
yet the Spartans finally have the ingredients they have lacked
for the past few seasons. That would be a true point guard and
a power forward to compliment Paul Davis under the basket. The
recipe includes Drew Neitzel and Marquise Gray.
Who’s Out: The
versatility of Alan Anderson and Kelvin Torbert will be missed.
Anderson, who averaged 13.2 points and 5.6 rebounds, played a
big role in getting the Spartans to the Final Four. When
Anderson had a bad game against North Carolina in St. Louis, so
did Michigan State. Torbert spent most of the year coming off
the bench, averaging 9.5 points per game. Chris Hill struggled
much of the year and lost his starting job at the end of the
campaign. The guard still managed to score 8.8 points per
contest. The lone survivor of the 2000 National Championship is
gone in Tim Bograkos. Bograkos was a redshirt during that
season. As a senior last year, the guard averaged 1.5 points
and 1.3 rebounds.
Who’s In:
Maurice Joseph is an underrated shooting guard and should see
some minutes coming off the bench. The 6-5 Canadian has a nice
stroke from the perimeter and can drive the lane, though he will
need to add some bulk to get through the paint in the Big Ten.
Point guard Travis Walton has the potential to be really good.
His defense is already outstanding and his ball handling and
court vision are decent. The outside shot could use some work,
but he won’t be asked to do much shooting. A trio of big men
redshirted last year and none will be as important as Marquise
Gray. The 6-8, 215 pound Flint, Michigan product is expected to
step in immediately and provide a big presence under the
basket. Gray is an amazing rebounder who will hit the glass
with more intensity than anybody on the banks of the Red Cedar
has seen in a long time. Centers Idong Ibok and Goran Suton
aren’t as highly touted, yet could fill in under the basket off
the bench. Ibok, with his 7-5 wingspan, is a tremendous shot
blocker. He’s surprisingly athletic for his size, but his
overall game needs to be smoothed out before he’ll see
significant minutes. Unlike most young big men, Suton is a
solid scorer with either hand under the basket. The 6-10, 250
pound, Lansing product can also step out and hit the midrange
jumper or dish to one of many talented, slashing wings.
Who to Watch:
Maurice Ager will lead the team in points again. Paul Davis
will flirt with a double-double on the season. Shannon Brown
will develop more consistency and have a break out year. And
Drew Neitzel will have to find a way to get them all the ball.
Neitzel is the least proven player of the four returning players
that started at the end of last season. His freshman campaign
started out shaky, but the point guard did earn 14 starts at the
end of the year. There won’t be a Chris Hill waiting on the
sideline to take over if Neitzel runs into trouble this year.
Neitzel won’t have to improve on his 3.5 points per game, but he
will with more playing time. He averaged 2.9 assists and 1.4
turnovers per game, which is a nice ratio for a freshman. If
Neitzel plays like he did at the end of last season, the
Spartans will have nothing to worry about. If he improves,
they’ll be looking hard at another Final Four.
Projected
Conference Rank: The Big Ten is dangerous with eight teams
that could be ranked in the top 25. Another 13-3 conference
record will put the Spartans in 1st place and have
Coach Tom Izzo’s squad ready for another deep run in the NCAA
Tournament.
Projected
Post-season Tournament: NCAA
Projected Starting
Five:
Drew Neitzel.,
Sophomore, Guard, 3.5 points per game
Shannon Brown, Junior,
Guard, 10.9 points per game
Maurice Ager, Senior,
Guard, 14.1 points per game
Marquise Gray,
Freshman, Forward, DNP last season
Paul Davis, Senior,
Center, 12.2 points per game
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