Mercier’s STATE of the Big Ten Address
Submitted by Paul Mercier on Fri, 01/30/2009 - 18:20
Hello, my fellow Big Tenians. We once again find ourselves immersed in a “beat ‘em up, and outlast ‘em” Big Ten season. And as we reach the midway point in conference play, it is time for my State of the Big Ten address. Let’s first start by looking at the conference as a whole.
Climate Change?
It seems we’ve reached a point in time in which the formally rough and tough Big Ten is becoming a finesse oriented league. With teams like Michigan, Northwestern, PennState and Iowa relying on the three ball, half of the league seems to be much less physical than it used to be. There are, however, still some teams playing tough basketball: MichiganState, Purdue, Minnesota, and Illinois are very tough both inside and out on offense, and are all very tough teams on defense. ThrowOhioState and Wisconsin into that mix on occasion, and the other half of the conference seems to still be playing tough basketball. To avoid embarrassment, we’ll leave Indiana out of the argument for now; Crean’s team is a work-in-progress.
Success Strategies
So which style is better? Well, it clearly seems to me that the toughness in the Big Ten is still winning out. MichiganState; Purdue; Minnesota; and Illinois are leading the Big Ten in that order, while, Penn State; OhioState; Northwestern; and Michigan bring up the middle portion. Wisconsin seems to be a mystery, and Indiana is…young.
MichiganState is the obvious frontrunner heading into the latter half of the season, a full game ahead of the teams behind them. So what are they doing right? Almost everything.
They’re balanced:
MichiganState is by far the most balanced team in the Big Ten. They are tough on defense-Travis Walton might be there best perimeter defender in the country, and the rest of the team is slowly progressing as a defensive wall. Additionally, their offense can be controlled- Kalin Lucas leads the conference in assist to turnover ratio, and is among the country’s best point guards in that category. But at the same time, their controlled point guard can also drive to the basket and create a shot at any given moment.
They have a deep bench:
The Spartans have nine guys that could legitimately start on this team right now. Durrell Summers has recently stepped in to help lead his team while Raymar Morgan is sick. Chris Allen Korie Lucious can get hot at any moment. And, senior Marquise Gray can catch fire and serve as a spark plug when given the opportunity. Add in 7-footer Idong Ibok and freshman Draymond Green, and it’s easy to see how much depth Izzo has to work with.
They’re well coached:
Izzo has proven time and time again that he knows how to get the most out of his players. After a disastrous loss at home to Northwestern, Izzo shuffled his lineup, challenged a few players, and received an overwhelming response from guys like Durrell Summers. Izzo also once again scheduled a tough non-conference lineup which helped his players prepare for a much improved Big Ten.
They win on the road:
Every game is important in the Big Ten. But, sneaking out some tough road wins become crucial to a conference championship; The Spartans are 5-0 on the road in the conference- their best start ever.
Be Aware
This is not to say that the Spartans have this conference locked up; we are far from awarding anyone a championship just yet. But it would be hard to argue against the fact that MichiganState has put itself in a good position heading into the home stretch. As many predicted, Purdue is close behind, nipping at the Spartans’ heels. It should be an interesting showdown the rest of the way. Don’t forget: the Spartans and Boilermakers will battle at The Breslin Center to end the season. There just might be a conference championship on the line.
We’ve already seen some Spartan streaks broken this year, and it has been eight years since Izzo’s squad hung a conference banner from the rafters of Breslin; Spartan fans can only hope that this team snaps that streak as well.
