I'm watching Nebraska and Penn State and it appears that the Huskers will finally get a Big Ten win, though I wouldn't put it past them to blow the game in the last six minutes and change.
Michigan squeaked by Northwestern at home and I still don't really know what to make of the Wolverines. As usual, they live and die by the three-pointer, and they shot poorly against the 'Cats. I'm sure Michigan will be jacked for MSU on Tuesday, so I'm not penciling that in as a win for the Spartans like a lot of people around here (i.e. the Lansing area) are. That's not saying I don't think the Spartans can win, but it will definitely be a dogfight. (Well, as I finished writing that paragraph, Nebraska nailed two 3's in a row and extended their lead to 18 with 4:53 left, so it's probably safe to say they'll win--and the Cornhuskers DO finally win their first Big Ten basketball game).
The MSU basketball team may have played the most complete game I've seen from them all year in demolishing Iowa last night. Granted, it was a home game and Iowa is not that good, but the Hawkeyes are better than a 34-point blowout loss (and it could have been much worse if MSU hadn't emptied the bench in the last few minutes).
The Spartan basketball team seems to be coming together in ways that I never imagined in the beginning of the year. Draymond Green has been great, and has finally added consistent perimeter shooting to his arsenal; Keith Appling is a marvel--so fun to watch; the bigs (Nix and Payne) are dominating underneath; and there have been so many pleasant surprises: Travis Trice filling in at point guard and playing really well, Brandon Wood providing offense and defense, and in my mind the most pleasant surprise of all is the way Austin Thornton has been playing. We always knew he could play defense and hustle, but he finally looks comfortable shooting the ball and has drained some big shots.
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Since the last time I wrote in here, Jerel Worthy announced he was leaving MSU to enter the NFL draft, and like everybody else, I wasn't surprised. I wish him the best of luck at the next level and thanks for three great years with the Spartans.
The big surprise was Edwin Baker foregoing his senior year. I didn't see that coming, but upon reflection I suppose it makes sense. There's no guarantee he'd get more carries next year, seeing as Le'Veon Bell will be the number one tailback, and I suppose if he transferred, he'd probably have to sit out a year. I hope Baker knocks out the scouts at the combine and makes it in the NFL.
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I'd like to make some future posts in here a little more interesting. I want to do some special posts (my personal favorite Spartan wins of all time, most painful losses). I also recently unearthed a "comparison/contrast" paper I wrote in 12th grade English class in which I used the 1985 MSU/UofM football game as my subject. That may be fun reading if you'll forgive my teenage logic and writing.
