The State News sports reporters discuss all MSU sports.
Welcome back to Sports Roundtable, State News' sports podcast. I'm Jacob Smith joined by
Luke:Luke Joseph.
Madi:Madi Warden
Jacob:We are back for yet another episode. Last one before spring break, so we're gonna make it a good one for you guys. Since we're not gonna do it next week, we're gonna kinda go over a little bit of some season closings for a few teams, especially the ones that have been kind of on fire and, really gearing up for some potential postseason appearances with MSU men's basketball, MSU women's basketball. And we're talking a little bit about MS, MSU hockey as well, because that's definitely a point of interest as they close their season with one remaining series. And then we'll give a little bit of shout out to women's tennis in a little bit, but we're gonna start with men's basketball today.
Jacob:Fantastic win over Michigan this weekend. Gain set against Maryland, but we kinda wanna hit home on that Michigan win first. Seventy five sixty two over that, ranked number 12 Michigan at the time. Jace Richardson, big ten freshman of the week. This game was completely electric if you watched it.
Jacob:It was peak big ten hoops, but also, like, peak peak Michigan Michigan State basketball. It just feels so good when these teams are competitive again. Fantastic win for MSU with really defining, success for their season and a much needed win.
Luke:Yeah. I mean, it just, you know, goes to show that MSU still owns the state of Michigan in basketball at least. You know, but Jace Richardson arguably has, like, been our best player, these last few games, and he's even generating, you know, potential lottery pick buzz in the NBA draft, which is incredible to think about, considering that, you know, he wasn't looked at to be a lottery pick, much less a first round pick, in this very deep draft class. But, you know, we held, Wolf to, I think, 11 points in that game, and he's been Michigan's best player. We played in, like, incredible defense.
Luke:Although, Golden did f 21, but, you know, he's he's been amazing offensively all year, so it's kinda hard to stop him. But other than that, we really, especially in the second half, we really just dominated on the defensive side of the ball. We only held them the 24 points, and it was just a big, big win for MSU. And now we have, I believe, eight quad one wins.
Jacob:Oh, really? Yeah.
Luke:Definitely helps out the resume
Madi:Yeah.
Luke:Let's do that. For March.
Jacob:Yeah. What'd you say, my kid?
Madi:Yeah. I mean, like you said, Jacob, it's it's so much more fun, I think, in college basketball on all cylinders when you have two rivalry teams that are actually playing good basketball. When they're actually interesting to watch, one team isn't getting blown out by the other. They're trying to keep it close, and obviously still a 13 win for Michigan State, but still just having that competitive energy back. I mean, last year, you had Juwan Howard who was leading just a absolutely terrible Michigan team.
Madi:Your before when we played at Chrysler was just a few days after what happened at Michigan State, and I feel like this is the first game that Michigan and Michigan State have played against each other. That's been, like, that heated rivalry game, that we haven't seen in years. So it was definitely it was great to watch these two competitive teams, finally compete for something. Both of them are at the top of the big 10. And I even heard on I think I don't remember what I heard it on.
Madi:But whoever wins this series, they're big 10 champions. That's their title. So it'll be interesting to see especially how the last game of the or the last game of the season against the two plays out, and there's still a lot of basketball left.
Jacob:Yeah. Most definitely. I think Michigan State showed a lot of resilience in this game because they obviously went up to start that game. They went on a huge run to begin the game and kinda had Michigan shaking a little bit at home, but then Michigan put together, I believe, it was a 15 o run.
Luke:I think it was something like that. Yeah.
Jacob:It was a crazy run.
Luke:I think, like, ten minutes into the first half, I think, Michigan got up, like, 16 to 13 after we were just playing really well in the first five minutes. So Yeah. Yeah. They're definitely a really, really good team still.
Jacob:Yeah. It goes to show how much they can fight back, especially on the road because that's no easy environment. I know Chrysler Center is, a very loud environment in college basketball. Obviously, Michigan fans come out, for most of their games and support, but I feel like that goes to show. Like, Michigan State has fought so much through adversity this year even though they only have five losses and they're number eight in the country right now.
Jacob:They've been down plenty of times in games. They've had slow starts plenty of times in games, and they've always found that way to just fight back. They never really get ahead of themselves and kinda just give up at any point of the game. Obviously, Thomas is not ever gonna let his team do any of that no matter who's on the court. But I think Michigan State's really done a good job of hanging in games, especially when things aren't going their way, especially when the three point shots aren't falling.
Jacob:Because I feel like we we all know now, that that Michigan State's biggest weakness is not hitting a three ball consistently. But in this game, they shot, where do I have it here? They shot, they shot, like, around 40%. Forty forty point nine % from three. Yep.
Jacob:So, obviously, when they're gonna shoot that well from three, games against no matter the opponent are probably gonna go in their favor. And I feel like in this game as well, they really played to their strengths. Their guard play was phenomenal. I mean, Jace Richardson had 21 on seven eleven shooting, 18 points from Trey Hallman, eleven from Jayne Nakeens, and 10 from Jeremy Fears Junior who hasn't been scoring as much this year. And especially when their bigs were not playing as well as they're used to.
Jacob:I mean, Zappala and Koehler were in foul trouble. It it was great to see the guards to the boat.
Luke:I mean, Koehler had, two points. Zappalo didn't even, he only shot at once, and he didn't unfortunately score. But, you know, Carson Cooper played some good minutes. He went three for four at six points. You know, got eight boards.
Luke:Colin Carr, just being Colin Carr just being athletic. Xavier Booker knocked down that one three. But, yeah, it's just this team just has, like, a ton of depth. Like, we could go, like, ten ten deep. You know, Trey Holloman would probably be starting for, like, most other colleges instead of coming off the bench.
Jacob:And he was starting this year earlier before Deepakistan took over, so there you go.
Luke:And it's I think it's kind of amazing that we had, you know, recently, Jay Surgitson has kind of been that go to guy, but throughout most of the season, nobody really looked at the Spartans and was like, yeah. They have that Cassius Winston or, you know, Denzel Valentine type of guy. Like, we don't we don't really have that. And the fact that we're eighth in the country is just, amazing to to watch and really just goes to give credit where credit suited Tom Izzo. I mean, he's coaching his butt off.
Jacob:Yeah. Most definitely. He's definitely come on and kinda given us vintage time as of this whole season. I think to your point, like, obviously, this team, like, Jace Richton has kind of risen as a go to scorer. Like, he'll get he's been scoring, multiple 20 games this year.
Jacob:Jay naked's obviously with that senior leadership. He could take a tough shot, take the final shot, and you're comfortable with it. But I feel like just like you said, like, everybody's kinda coming together, playing their old their own role. They know what they need to do. I mean, their rebounding has been unbelievable this year as well.
Jacob:They had 14 offensive rebounds against Michigan in that game. They also won the turnover battle, 11 to 15, and then they won that rebound battle overall 34 to 25. So Michigan State is gonna be a gritty team. They're gonna give kind of anybody trouble in March just because they kinda play all assets of the game very evenly, and they excel others like rebounding and, stuff like that. Obviously, their shooting is gonna be streaky, so that might be the demise in March, but I feel like that this team is built to win.
Jacob:It's built to definitely make a run. And even, like, I think the projected a three or two through, like, four seed right now. But even once they get farther into March Madness, I feel like they have upset potential on some of those top teams just because they can wreak havoc and really play scrappy defense and also get, can, like, also crash the glass as well on that rebounding side.
Luke:Yeah. Definitely.
Madi:I think kinda going back to what you guys or what Luke was saying about the depth of this team is just I mean, you look at the starting five, all were close to well, three of the five were in double figures. Trey Holloman off the bench had 18, Carson Cooper, six. I mean, you see these guys that can step in and play and don't have to be in that starting five lineup. It like you said, it's this team with the depth that they have is fit to make a deep run-in the NCAA March Madness tournament.
Jacob:Most definitely. And the last point I have on kind of the performance standards, like, stuff like that. Like, Trey Holloman scoring 18 off the bench, he's completely accepted the fact that he got demoted to the bench for a freshman guard
Madi:Yeah.
Jacob:Taking his place. And I feel like his response has been unreal. I mean, we all saw those three straight threes that he hit in a row, which were absolutely electric. And it's just so nice to have, like, because Trey has been around for a few years now. So just to show that he will do whatever it takes to win games.
Jacob:And even if that means putting freshman guard, Jace Richardson, in his place and then he leads the second unit, everybody's bought into the culture, and he's totally he's totally okay with that.
Luke:I think, again, that just goes to Izzo's coaching. Like, he could've, you know, Trey could've just been like, I don't wanna come off the bench. You know? I I deserve to be a starter, but, you know, Izzo probably just coached him into being like, look. We think you can be I know you can be more effective coming off the bench and just leading that second unit.
Luke:And the fact that Trey has bought into that and it's, you know, paying off, you know, scoring 18 points against, you know, archrival hitting those three straight threes, it's just incredible to watch. And it's gonna be a it's gonna be a very interesting, you know, last three, four games.
Jacob:Yeah. They got three games left including a game tonight of four. They tip-off against Maryland in a matter of fifteen minutes, at 06:30 here tonight. But, Maryland comes in at number 16 in that matchup. They also close the season to number 11, Wisconsin, Iowa, and number 15, Michigan again.
Jacob:So, obviously, three out of the four last games are against ranked opponents. It's not gonna be easy by any means to kinda control their own destiny in a sense, but, they definitely show that they can beat some of the top tier talent as they've done. But I can get a three very, very solid wins in a row with wins over Michigan, Illinois, and Purdue. So Yeah. That gave me its Maryland.
Jacob:So it'll also be pretty interesting. I feel like because there's freshman Derek Queen who has been one of the best freshmen in the country, probably a top 10 pick. And, this year's NBA draft upcoming, he's, like, he's he's the only one though in that backcourt that's, like, a true center, which should be very interesting. So I feel like this matchup is gonna be different because Simone Zappala, Jackson Cole, and Carson Cooper are gonna have their hands full with Derek Queen who plays a center, but he's also able to stretch the floor really well. He'll hit tough shots.
Jacob:He'll hit contested jumpers, especially from that mid range. He's really gonna kind of attack you. I think the biggest thing to watch for that game tonight and especially for teams in March Madness that might play a little bit of smaller lineup is how our bigs that aren't as mobile such as Carson Cooper, Jackson Koehler, is Apollo maybe a little bit. I wanna see how they can step up to the challenge and guard a mobile, jump shooting big man like Derek Queen because he's been unreal for Maryland this year. A big reason to why they are number 16 and also at the top of that big 10 conference, which should be an interesting one tonight.
Luke:And they they played pretty well against, you know, Danny Wolfe who has been, you know, playing really well as a seven footer who can, you know, spread the floor for Michigan. But I think Derek Queen, he's just, you know, he's just so talented. You know, like you said, he can stretch the four. He can, you know, knock down a three if he wanted to. It is gonna be a really interesting matchup, and I think that's gonna I think that is gonna be the biggest challenge for MSU, you know, just being able to guard that.
Luke:You know, and look. Maryland's
Jacob:I I
Luke:would say Maryland is kinda like MSU in the fact that beginning of the season, they were unranked, but then they've they're just a scrappy team who everybody's looking to their queen as the guy, but it's all it's kinda like the Jace Richardson thing where, you know, it's a freshman, just playing outstanding basketball, but they don't have kinda like that, you know, headline player, if if that's making any sense.
Jacob:Yeah. I like that comparison.
Madi:I was kinda gonna go back to Jace Richardson like you guys were talking about with Trey kind of losing his spot in the starting lineup. But I mean, when you get a freshman, his first time in the starting lineup, putting up 29 points, I feel like that kind of warrants him to step into a role where he's almost more determined than other players on the team to help win. And especially against a team like Michigan, he had he was out on the court the longest out of any player. He was out there for thirty three minutes. That's more than anybody was out there.
Madi:It just shows how determined Jace is to make this team as good as they are. And I know that that kinda, like, jumps back to a little bit before, but I I feel like that's
Jacob:Great take.
Madi:Like, I think that he's just I think that Jace is a really big reason that this team is making it as far as they are with that power and that talent that he has as just a freshman. And I always love, like, when we bring up Jace, it's like you see his pops. He sees pops in them, and they're complete like, they play different styles, but it's it's so awesome to see him carry on that Michigan State legacy of having his dad win a 2,000 national championship and then coming in and helping this team attempt to do the same exact thing. But yeah.
Jacob:Yeah. He's been unreal, and I feel like he he meets that mold a little bit of being a Spartan dog. Like, he's gonna play scrappy. He's gonna do everything that Thomas wants, and he's also gonna score the ball really efficiently. He's, put together a lot of the, like, some of the best scoring that we've seen out of recent, his old players.
Jacob:I feel like Tyson Walker is be, like, one of the few comparisons that comes to mind for how much production they can give you on the offensive end while doing the same things that Thomas was always, kinda hit home on, but definitely a good point. Should be an interesting close to the season, especially tonight's game against Maryland because Maryland averages 83.7 points per game and won eight out of the last nine. So definitely some tests, for Michigan State as they round out their big 10, regular season and their regular season overall. But they're sitting pretty tied first at the top of the big 10 right now in that. Moving on a little bit to women's basketball on the other side.
Jacob:They've had a little bit of different story as of late, three and three in their last six games. They're currently ranked currently ranks number 23. I'll get it one of these days. After being ranked as highest as number 16 this season, they have two games left. One tonight at seven against number 12 Ohio State and Minnesota as well.
Jacob:What have we kinda seen from, Michigan State women's basketball? It's, like, been a little bit different than what we've seen kinda at the beginning of the season, mid season as well.
Luke:Yeah. I think that, you know, obviously, going three and three, after being ranked as sixteen, fifteen, the highest this season. You know, I it's not great, and it obviously doesn't help that we're going against the number 12 team in the country. But a win at Ohio State, would be an amazing, you know, feeling to to have moving forward as we get closer to that big ten tournament. But I think that it just all depends.
Luke:You know, we won the last game against Indiana, so hopefully, we can, you know, just build off of that momentum after losing, two two straight against, UCLA and USC. You know, I think, hopefully, we can get that win today.
Jacob:Yeah. I
Madi:think that what we need to keep an account for women's basketball is though they did lose to USC and UCLA, two of our two of the new big ten conference opponents, those two teams have been powerhouses the last few years, and they stayed within arms length of both of them. Yeah, they they're three and three in their last six games, but two of those losses are two USC and UCLA. So, yeah, taking a win over Ohio State in Columbus would be huge for them. But they're still number 23 in the country. They've been in the top 25 for three quarters of the season.
Madi:So, obviously, they have themselves in a tournament position. They did last year even unranked. So it's gonna be interesting to see how they finish out this season. Obviously, it's the same kind of story book as men's basketball, and you're finishing the last few games of your season. Half of them are against ranked opponents.
Madi:So it's gonna be tough, but, I think that that's just a huge thing to keep an account for the women's team is they did lose to USC and UCLA, but they're two teams who have been on the map last year and the year before. And those are just teams that we aren't used to playing yet. So I think that that's something to definitely take into account as well.
Jacob:Yeah. Michigan stays in a really good position here because they're projected a five seed right now in the women's March Madness bracket. So and especially still being ranked number 23 by by no means are they in trouble. Just they've had a tough one of their schedule come up. This Ohio State game tonight is their fifth test against the ranked opponent this season.
Jacob:They've played four already. They've only won one, and that was that win over Michigan that was dominant. They've lost their other game there are other three games, that they played against ranked opponents including, losses against Maryland, UCLA, and USC. But these losses have all been closed, like you said, Mehdi. The UCLA loss was $83.75, and they were right within that game until the final few minutes until we started fouling and giving UCLA, free throws, and they were number one of the country at the time.
Jacob:Or that was a seventy five sixty nine loss. My bad. Sorry. And then eighty three seventy loss was number four USC with Juju Watkins where she, had, I think, 27 points. And then they also had a loss over number eight Maryland, like I said.
Jacob:So this team is playing within games. Six of their seven losses, like, total on the season are by 10 points or less. So they're they're in games. But what I wanna see for this final stretch of two games, especially going into the conference tournament, especially going into the women's March Madness, is get the ball moving. Get the ball moving around a lot.
Jacob:I have a stat written down here that Jaden Simmons leads the team in assists per game with only 3.3. I know that that's that's pretty low for any form of basketball standards. I know women's basketball is played a little bit different than differently, than men's basketball is, but, they only have two games this season total where a player has recorded over six assists in a game. I know six assists is a pretty good amount for one player record in a game, but they played, 27 games this year, and that's only happened twice. So I just wanna see them get the ball moving around a little bit.
Jacob:They have great scores such as, Grace Van Salute and Taryn Harlock. So get the ball to them. Like, I know I know they're a little bit more ISO dominant. They wanna play and play through them, as the as the best players, obviously. But I feel like there's great shooting on this team, and they have the tools to where they can facilitate, pretty well to get that ball moving.
Jacob:I think that's just, like, something that's not necessarily been a weakness, but something that they can definitely try to incorporate into their offense little bit. But it's been working all season long, obviously. Just something to note, I feel like, as of late and going into the postseason.
Luke:Yeah. I mean, you know, even against, Indiana, I just have the stats pull up here. Only five of 25, from the three point and only 25 of 63, you know, from the field. So, obviously, you know, gotta shoot a little bit better than that. You know, like, Haylock only won a seven won a seven from the three.
Luke:But she did have 16 points against Indiana, so I think that the three point shooting has gotta, you know, improve to to win these against these ranked opponents, and Ohio State definitely has a really good defense as well as a really good offense. I believe their leading scorer has 17, points per game. So it's gonna be interesting to see how they can, you know, stop her and stop her from scoring all those points.
Madi:I mean, Theron Hallock has had games where she's gotten into the, like, high twenties in point. So, yes, sixteen, seventeen points is good, but those are you need to start producing more, and that's how you're gonna win games is if you keep producing more, have those good games. I think she had, like, 29 points or something like that against Michigan. There's been a couple games this season where she has just flourished. So Alec is gonna be one that you wanna see shooting the ball a little bit more, even, Julia Arol down low.
Madi:There's there's so many talented ladies on this team, that we know can produce more, and attempt to take that win over a highly ranked Ohio State team who's been on the map for the last few seasons. They were pretty good last year. Good this year, obviously, ranked number 12. So yeah. Like but like you guys said, every single game that they've lost has been within 10.
Madi:So they just need to be able to produce more, produce a little bit more offense to put themselves ahead in these last two games of the season.
Luke:I think Julia's gonna have a good game today. I think she's really stepped up in kinda when we have to go up against, like, a bigger opponent. You know, she really steps up as the the go to player Mhmm. You know, against USC and UCLA. Like, we didn't win those games.
Luke:But, you know, played 31 in both, had 16 against USC, 18 against UCLA, had 23, but only had, three against Wisconsin and four against Iowa. So, obviously, that's not great, to have, but against ranked opponents, she obviously plays pretty well in that spotlight.
Jacob:Yeah.
Luke:So I think that she's gonna have to be a big part in this win today.
Jacob:Most definitely. And like I've said before, I think this team is right there. Obviously, the closed losses tell a story, and they've had a great offense all year, especially in wins. They average 84.8 points per game when they win games, and they have 20 of them. So that's a very good amount and a very good average to have 61 or 68.1 in, in losses and points per game.
Jacob:So, I just I just like I said, I just wanna see them move the ball around because if you're averaging 84 points per game and your wins and you're only still recording around three or four assists a game, I feel like that kinda tells the story. This team can be streaky. We've seen that. They battle the turnover battle sometimes. So I think this team is definitely in a good position.
Jacob:They have a great opportunity tonight against Ohio State. I feel like that is, a really good confidence booster, especially if they can get that win tonight. Put put it on your resume, go into March, go into the conference tournament with a very, very solid year, probably better than what they expected, especially starting the season unranked, and have some confidence going to the March Madness. I think this team's built to do it. They have three, double digit scores.
Jacob:They have a good offense. Defense is there.
Madi:I think
Jacob:they just gotta have some fun. But and, obviously, the expectations aren't crazy high, so I feel like that's the best thing for them. Just Yeah. Probably like you know how to do it. Go out there and have fun.
Luke:Yep. Well, I mean, well said.
Jacob:Yeah. But, that's kinda how we see we just have to see how that season closes women's basketball. Like we said, two, games left against Ohio State, Minnesota. But just a little shout out to the women's tennis, for MSU. Eight straight games, they've won now or eight straight matches, we should say.
Jacob:They started the season o and two. They're now eight and two. And in their win against Ball State, which was a four one victory, Kim Bruno, coach Kim Bruno recorded her ninety ninth career win for the Spartans. It's just it's fun when all these teams are just breaking records and, like, going on win streaks, and it it's it's so nice to see. I mean,
Luke:I've I've gotten to speak to Kim a few times. Really nice, really knowledgeable person about tennis. You know, she she believed in this team. You know, she was obviously disappointed, after the o and two, but, you know, she kept telling me that this team is gonna be special. And, obviously, winning eight straight, you know, bouncing back from that o and two start, just really goes to show how right she was about the potential of this team.
Madi:Yeah. I mean, it's something we've talked about a lot, on the podcast is these smaller teams lesser known, not your our teams of football, basketball, hockey. Women's tennis has been on fire. Michigan State baseball went six and o for the first time since 2016. They're back in the polls for the first time since 2016.
Madi:So it's awesome to see these smaller teams. I mean, gymnastics has been on a tear the past three or four seasons. It it's just so great to see these smaller teams in these smaller sports getting the recognition that they deserve, especially for a women's tennis program that hasn't had the success they were looking for for the past few seasons to be able to start o and two and then go eight straight is just amazing. So good for them. Shout out women's tennis.
Jacob:Yeah. One more point on it. These wits a bit dominant too. Yeah. Like, there there's only been one match, and that was that first win of the season against Xavier where they gave up more, like, more than one point, the opposing team.
Jacob:So they've had three shutouts during this span, and they are just running through teams like it's no tomorrow. Really, really cool to see for women's tennis. Hopefully, they keep it up. They have upcoming see, they have number 57 Columbia on March 2 at Iowa, at Nebraska coming up, and then they're they return home March 15 against Penn State. So some road road matches coming up for them, but should be a very, very cool storyline to watch for the rest of the season for them.
Jacob:And then our last talking point, of this episode, Manny's specialty. We're gonna talk about some MSU hockey because I feel like enough time has passed since captain Red Savage has gone down to kind of assess how this team is performing and especially with a very, very tough big ten, like, conference tournament coming up and then frozen four and, the the actual national bracket coming up. It's gonna be very interesting to see how this team has performed because they have not looked like theirselves, especially since captain Red Savage just go down. So, Maddie, I want you to kinda tell us what you think you've seen, since that injury.
Madi:So here's my opinion about losing Red. So I think last year was the same. We kinda after winter break, after having that last by weekend of the season, we kinda not fell into a slump, but didn't have the greatest record. We finished with a number four seed in the tournament. We're still seeded to be number two for this year.
Madi:We are still in that top four conversation even if we don't have red. I think that there is an effect of losing your captain who's not on the ice, but he's still in the locker room. He's still there at practices every single day. He still has that voice as a leader on and off the ice. Yeah.
Madi:The numbers show that things have taken a downfall since red, but I think that it would be a completely different story if we were to lose, say, Isaac Howard on offense or if we were to lose Maxim Sturback or Patrick Geary or some of these, like, power defensive players are really high scoring offensive players. I think that things would be a lot different. And it's not to say that losing red isn't tough. He's our captain for a reason. I don't think that it diminishes any chance of this team going on a run.
Madi:They're special. They have something special. This team has something. They have grit. They have the star power of Isaac Howard, a Hobie Baker nominee.
Madi:They have Trey, Augustine, who's just been absolutely outstanding in the net, also a candidate for Hobie Baker. So, yeah, the numbers show that maybe things haven't been producing as offensively as they would have liked it to since red went down. But it still doesn't mean that this team isn't fit to go on a run, to make a stride at a national tournament title, to repeat big ten regular season, big ten tournament titles. So yeah. I mean, still a lot of season left.
Madi:Obviously, not the outcome that they wanted against Penn State this past weekend, but since Penn State has gotten their starting goalie back from injury, he has been absolutely outstanding for them. And I mean, we had well over 40 shots on goal each night. So it's not like we weren't producing offense. Like, yeah, there was some things to clean up, of course, every single game. There's something to clean up.
Madi:They've no team plays a perfect game. You're gonna make mistakes, but they still they were producing offense, but they just could not get anything to bounce behind Sergei of who's just been an outstanding goalie for Penn State, since he's been back. So, yeah, it should be interesting to see how the end of the season plays out. Is it tough that we lost Red? Absolutely.
Madi:It's tough when any team loses their captain, but I don't think that that affects the outcome of how this season can go.
Jacob:Yeah. And I think especially now that it's getting to the postseason, I feel like it's good to kinda get these losses, get these, like, bumps out right now. Obviously, they've lost three out of their five like, their last three out of five games, but they're all been close games that too. I think the Ohio State series was the only one where it was, like, a little bit somewhat concerning, where they had a they had a I mean, they had a four one win, but they lost two to four. And then, they've they beat Michigan six one, lost them two to one.
Jacob:The Penn State first game this week or this past weekend was a two to two shootout loss and then a two to three loss, that Saturday night. So it's not like they're getting blown out. Obviously, the offensive production hasn't been the exact same 3.8 goals per game in the first twenty seven games, 2.8 in their last six. So it's obviously taken a little bit of difference. It's just a little bit of a smaller sample size for sure compared to 27 to six games.
Jacob:Obviously, not having Red Savage on the ice is different as well, but his voice is still there in the locker room. Like you said, he's still coming to practice, still showing out to games. He's doing what a captain would. Obviously, you're gonna miss his voice actually on the ice and playing with him, but this defense for Michigan State has also provided them a lot of security this year. That's a big reason to why they've had the success they've had this year as well as last year.
Jacob:And then obviously having Trey Augustine in goal, gives you a very, very good chance to be successful. Like you said, 40 shots on goal this past weekend. Like, the goals are gonna come. A breakthrough is gonna come. I feel like this is just not as much of, like, a struggle right now.
Jacob:It's just a little bit of a setback. You're facing adversity. You're still adjusting without one of your best players on your team. So, obviously, there's gonna be time for adjustment. But they're still getting very similar production as to what they got, especially with shots on goal and especially with not letting up too many goals on the defensive side of the ice as well.
Jacob:I like I said, I think this this team is gonna be fine. The games are gonna get a little bit more important now, so it's gonna be interesting to see kinda how they battle that. And, I mean, pretty much every series they've had is against a ranked opponent, this past month, two months, and season overall. So they've got a lot of good tests with teams that are gonna play them tough. Very, very good preparation for how the big ten is gonna be in the tournament as well as the frozen four because frozen four are gonna be facing a lot of better teams arguably in the big ten.
Jacob:So, I think this team will be fine. Just I think we need to give them more time because this is a six or so sample size of games that they've been without red and especially the bi week during between. So it should be interesting to see.
Madi:Absolutely. And you talk about the the defense has been great. They're the youngest team in the conference. There's their their back end of their defensive players are so young. Their top defensive pairing are both sophomores.
Madi:They usually have an x their extra skater is a freshman. They have a freshman paired with a junior. They have one defensive pairing that are seniors, that, like, have that leadership defensively. But they've just they've the defense has proved as well as Trey Augustine that this is a team that can make a run at a national championship game. I expect them to at least make it to the frozen four, if not to the national championship game.
Madi:They have a lot lot to prove. They have a lot to fight for. They could have done it last year, but playing Michigan six times in a season is never gonna be fun, especially that sixth time after you've won five straight four straight. But, yeah, they're a super young team. They've still got a lot to learn.
Madi:They've still got a lot to work for. This is just the beginning for them, especially when you're heading into the big ten tournament in those one and done games, and in the NCAA tournament in one and done games as well.
Jacob:Yeah. Luke, did you have any thoughts?
Luke:I mean, all I have I I guess mine's more of a question, but, is there anybody, you know, since red has gone down, is there anybody who you've kinda noticed who's sort of taken, like, that leadership role that MSU, like, lost with RED?
Madi:Yeah. I think that all three of their alternate captains have done a really great job. Carson Dorward, turn and shouty and Matt Baskill have all done amazing. I think Matt is one that really sticks out to me. He's just I think that he's a really vocal guy on the team, that has no problem stepping up in those situations.
Madi:Nicholas Andrews is a grad transfer this year, and he's done a fantastic job of being a leader. There's freshmen that'll step up. Matt Basgal at media availability said that. Oh, and West is a guy who will be vocal, reminds him of Nash Nienhuis, who was the captain of the team last year. So there's I don't think it's just one person that's really stepped up.
Madi:I think that there's a handful of guys that have stepped up in the place of red, but especially Matt Basgal who's just been outstanding, defensively. He's the he's leading defenseman, on the team in points. So, yeah, definitely, Matt has stuck out a lot, but there's definitely other guys on the team as well that have done a really great job of doing so.
Jacob:Yeah. I like that you mentioned that Owen West brought up last year's captain because I think the team's still gonna be hungry from last year because, obviously, there was very high expectations. It was their first year of kinda having the success in a while that they did last year. They lost the second round in that tournament and then NCAA tournament, but, they're built even better this year even without Red Savage. I I they lost to Michigan after they beat them plenty of times last season as well in that tournament.
Jacob:So I think, like, they're just hungry. They know how close they are to competing for a national championship. They're still the number two team in the nation, or or I I could be wrong. They're still top five for sure. Yeah.
Madi:Number three in The US CHO polls, which is all voting based. Like, people vote on that. But where it really matters is the pair wise, and they're ranked number two. And that's where they, that's how they see teams in the tournament. So the top 16 teams technically, top 14 and then two auto bids, get placed into the tournament.
Madi:So we're still number two.
Jacob:Yeah. It's where it matters.
Madi:It
Jacob:could be a lot worse. I mean, it's not like we're talking with the wheels completely falling off and we've fallen completely out the picture of the tournament in general. Like, this team is still a top team in the nation. Absolutely. I think like I've said before, this is kinda just facing adversity and it just just like, it came at this point in the season.
Jacob:Like, that happens. Injuries happen in sports. We all know that, and it's gonna happen kind of inevitably, but, it's good to shake the dust off now. I feel like this is just, an adjustment. It's a little bit of adversity.
Jacob:No great championship team is gonna win a championship without facing some sort of adversity at the college or pro level. So I feel like this is just a good test. It's gonna show it's gonna take a lot, especially from coach Knight and Gail to kinda get this team back and get them all bought in to convince them Mhmm. That they still can compete at the highest level. I know that they all believe they can as well, but, really just kinda sticking that into their brains and making sure that, nothing else has changed in terms of the championship window and nothing else has fallen off the table.
Jacob:They're also a very young team. So even next year, they're still gonna be good despite not having Red Savage, Trey Augustine, and some of those seniors. They're still gonna be good next year. So, this program is built for success. I think they're gonna be hungry from their past results and especially, now that they're good for the first time and, however long it's been in, like I mean, not not by good.
Jacob:I mean, like, championship contending. So, I think it would have to be a very interesting close to the season, but, did you guys have any, like, final thoughts or anything like that?
Madi:Yeah. I was gonna say, I think that one thing that people need to take into account is last year, Denver was ranked top four, top three, top two, one, for a majority of the season and then lost their final few games, just like Michigan State has kind of been doing, was knocked down to number five seed in the tournament and then went on to win the national championship for the second time in three seasons. So I think that Michigan State will never be out of the picture, when it comes to this national championship. I think that it's anybody's game. You never know what can happen if there can be an upset.
Madi:I mean, we almost got upset by Western Michigan in the first game of the tournament last year. So, yeah, it should be interesting seeing what happens this weekend. We go to Notre Dame to South Bend, and they've got a lot going on for them this weekend, especially on Saturday. Coach Jackson retires. He's been a name in college hockey in the NHL for the national team development program for years, so they retire.
Madi:Their head coach who's been there for quite some time, it's their senior night. So we got our senior night spoiled. It's time to go spoil somebody else's. But we sweep this weekend in Minnesota splits, in Pennsylvania against Penn State. We get the tournament title and we get the bye week.
Madi:So there's a lot riding on this weekend, especially with Penn State trying to take the sweep on their own home ice. Oh, yeah.
Jacob:There's a just a last question too. Is Minnesota guaranteed that seed right now if they were to win two in Pennsylvania at Penn State and we were to still win two against Notre Dame, Minnesota would take that big 10 title?
Madi:Yep. They do because they jumped ahead of us one point after sweeping Ohio State this past weekend. So we are at well, no. I think they jumped two points ahead of us. So I think we're at 44 or they're at 44.
Madi:We're at 42. Either way, if they sweep and we sweep, they get the title. If they split and we sweep, we get the title. If I don't know. There's so many different hypotheticals.
Madi:There's so many different hypotheticals.
Jacob:Time of the season when you have to do the math to figure out who's gonna win that.
Madi:Stop it.
Jacob:It's it's it gets to be a fun time, but they're still right to think of things as we've said, and especially still competing for the big 10, regular season title. It'll be a lot to see. But, Luke, do you have any final thoughts as well?
Luke:Oh, I don't have any final thoughts. I let the hockey people talk about hockey, so I just I I
Jacob:I am honored that you've classified me as a hockey person, because Maddie is obviously the one that's
Luke:more than me, and so you're a hockey person.
Jacob:I I respect that title. I will probably hold on to that for as long as I could ride it, but, that'll just about do it for this episode of Sports Roundtable. It's been fantastic to talk with you guys again and a lot to watch, especially since we won't be beating next week with spring break going on here for us as students. A lot to keep an an eye on for especially with Michigan State men's basketball plan right now. Gotta throw that game on when we get home.
Jacob:But, it's been great talking to you guys, like I said, again. And I hope you guys have a good rest of your day, and thanks for tuning in as well.
Madi:Bye.