For the East Region of the NCAA Basketball Tournament, one contest in the Sweet 16 contains a showdown between Michigan State and Kansas State. The Spartans are a battle-tested squad that finished fourth in the Big Ten this season but are coming off two excellent wins over USC and most recently, Marquette (69-60). MSU guard Tyson Walker is a sharpshooter, leading the squad in points per game at 14.5 while shooting an efficient 46.2% from the field. Opposing them will be the Wildcats, a top-three team from the Big 12 with a regular season record of 25-9. K-State is coming off a hard-fought win over Kentucky and has been able to hang with most squads they have faced this season and earned the No. 3 seed in the East for a reason.
For this report, SBS will be going over what to look for from each team along with a prediction in this matchup and even more notes about NCAAB wagering.
| NCAA Basketball Sweet 16 Game Two | The Pick |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas State vs. Michigan State | Kansas State ML | +113 | +113 | +113 |
As mentioned above, K-State is a top-three squad from the hyper-competitive Big 12, scoring seven wins over ranked opponents this season. This was highlighted by an overtime win over then-No. 2 ranked Kansas back in mid-January. The key offensive force this season for the Wildcats, pun intended, has been forward Keyontate Johnson. The senior leads the team in both scoring (17.7 ppg) and also rebounding (7.1 rpg) while also shooting an incredibly efficient 51.9% from the field.
After Johnson, Markquis Nowell is the leading man in the Wildcats’ backcourt, dishing out a superb 7.8 assists per game. This will be an interesting contest though as the Wildcats and Spartans are similar in terms of scoring (75.5 to 70.3) while the Spartans give up three fewer points per game than K-State, 65 to 62 ppg. Both squads average about the same in field goal percentage, rebounding, and blocks per game.
Coming off an emphatic 69-60 win over Marquette, the Spartans are riding high. Prior to that, Michigan State also held down another mythologically-inclined squad, the USC Trojans, 72-62, in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. In both contests, Michigan State was able to lead for the majority of each game. In the last game though, the Spartans had perhaps one of their most complete games, with Tom Izzo leaning on star guard Walker all the way to victory depositing shooting only 12.5% from the field.
Another squad with a solid resume, the Spartans were not able to score as many ranked wins as the Wildcats this year. However, they did not knock off then No. 4-ranked Kentucky earlier this year in double overtime. While that was in November, the Spartans did still string together some solid conference victories later in the year, from Rutgers (No. 23) to Indiana (No. 17). That said, they did flame out in the Big Ten Conference Tournament, but have rebounded nicely in the NCAA Tournament.
Prediction: This is a toss-up game for these squads, but take the Wildcats to win outright here given their stouter resume and body of work.
After you are all done with your research regarding the latest round of bets for the 2023 NCAA Tournament, SBS has a ton of great extra info to keep you on track. For instance, an amazing page to always have bookmarked during the NCAA basketball season is the SBS NCAAB betting sites rundown which goes over the latest betting markets for each college basketball game during the year. Now, since we are in March though, a fantastic page to always have an eye on during this time of year is our March Madness betting strategy guide which covers all kinds of odds and ends for March Madness wagering. On a separate note, if you are uncertain about which payment options are the best fit for you all, do not fret as the SBS payment methods breakdown has your back. Here you can find more info relating to deposit and withdrawal options and what makes the most sense for you from crypto to traditional banking routes.
About the Author
As a devout aficionado of sports, Chris Boline has carved a career within the athletic realm. A skilled scribe, he boasts a decade-long portfolio that encompasses coverage of the NBA G League, the Los Angeles Chargers, football and basketball across the country. Beyond his professional pursuits, Chris is deeply invested in his community and dedicates his leisure hours to serving on boards, collaborating with community organizations, and cherishing the company of loved ones. CURRENTLY Business Development and freelance sports writing RESIDES IN Reno, NV EDUCATION University of Nevada BS and MBA EXPERTISE -Sports writing proficiency in: NFL, NBA, UFC, boxing, golf, and some motor sports -Topical news -Promotional and marketing ideas/updates -Business development Summary Chris Boline serves in a business development sales capacity as his day job. He has previously held sales/marketing positions with The Applied Companies (TAC), KTVN 2 News and the NBA G League’s Reno Bighorns, affiliate of the Sacramento Kings. He is a Reno native and is a member of various community boards including the Nevada Sagebrush Alumni Chapter, NCET and the College of Business Alumni Association (COBAA). Chris graduated from the University of Nevada in 2015 with a bachelors in management and economics and also earned his MBA from Nevada in 2023. More about Chris: Past president of the College of Business Alumni Association (COBAA) 2022-23 Two-time honoree for University of Nevada Alumni Chapter of the Year (Nevada Sagebrush Alumni Chapter, 2017 & COBAA, 2021) 2021 NCET award for Professional Services Organization of the Year with TAC Northern Nevada Human Resources Association 2020 Best Places to Work-Northern Nevada, Second Place with TAC 2016-17 Reno Bighorns MVP from the Sacramento Kings The Nevada Sagebrush editor-in-chief 2013-15 Associated Collegiate Press 2015 Four-year Non-daily Newspaper Pacemaker honoree University of Nevada, Reno College of Business Dean's List honoree (5x) from 2011-2015 Nevada Press Association award for Best Sports Column – Community in 2015 Education
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