V-Cast: solid win over Niagara, but is Michigan State ready for No. 1 Kansas?

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State closed out the first week of the regular season with a 96-60 win over Niagara, a guard-heavy team that kept this game close for a half, and within a dozen points for 27 minutes. Superior talent and depth eventually won out for the Spartans, who rolled to a comfortable victory.

Afterward, SpartanMag staffers Jim Comparoni and Paul Konyndyk checked in with news, notes, and analysis in the latest V-Cast.

V-CAST TOPICS

Jaxon Kohler: In a difficult match-up for Michigan State bigs against a team full of 6-foot-5 wing types, Kohler had his hands full on defense all evening long. The junior center gave up some drives against Niagara, but more than made up for it with his performance on offense. Kohler finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds. Six of those rebounds came on the offensive glass and those offensive boards were a big reason why Michigan State had such a lopsided advantage in second-chance points. This was the type of game we expected from Kohler against Monmouth in the season opener.

Perimeter shooting still off: After shooting just 16.7 percent from behind the 3-point line in the season opener against Monmouth, Michigan State had nowhere but up to go in this game. The Spartans shot better against Niagara, making 33.3 percent of the triples they attempted in their second regular-season game. Be that as it may, Michigan State still missed too many open perimeter jumpers. After going 1-for-4 from three in the opener, Jaden Akins missed all three triples that he took against Niagara. The Spartans need Akins to knock down open triples for a chance to knock off No. 1 ranked Kansas in the Champions Classic next week. Xavier Booker and Frankie Fidler both made threes in this game, getting both of those two players going against Kansas would also help.

Kansas on tap: It remains to be seen if Kansas is indeed the No. 1 ranked team in college basketball. If the Jayhawks beat North Carolina on Friday night, that is likely what they’ll be ranked when Michigan State faces them in the Champions Classic. For the Spartans to be competitive in that game, they will need to make open jumpers. It would also help if Michigan State was able to finish some of the point-blank scoring opportunities that were squandered in the first half against Niagara. Michigan State has the depth to make things interesting against Kansas. For the Spartans leave Atlanta with a victory over the No. 1 ranked team in college basketball, they will likely need a monster performance by their guards starting with Akins.

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