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The Michigan State Spartans are in an unfamiliar spot, possibly on the NCAA men’s basketball tournament as the regular season hits its stretch run. They would love to pick up a host of victories the rest of the way to avoid that drama, and could get a big one this week against the Ohio State Buckeyes.
The Spartans are the home team and have been better than the Buckeyes in conference play so they should definitely be the favorites. However, this isn’t the same dominant Michigan State of years past so this could certainly be a competitive matchup.
Don't miss the hardwood action from the Jack Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing, Michigan at 9 p.m. ET on Tuesday, February 14, 2017. Catch every moment of the game live on ESPN.
We'll have NCAA basketball odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the college basketball Tuesday schedule.
Odds at BookMaker.eu
Michigan State is 15-10 straight up and 10-10 against the spread. The Spartans have played in 12 home games on the season and covered in seven of them. They are 9-6 against the spread as the favorite on the year.
Ohio State is 15-11 straight up but just 9-15 against the spread. The Buckeyes have played in nine road games on the year and have covered in three of them. Ohio State is 5-10 against the spread as the favorite and has covered in four of nine games as the underdog.
Key Stat
17. That’s how many times Michigan State turned the ball over the last time these two teams met back on January 15th. Despite shooting 50 percent from the field,the Spartans fell 72-67 in that matchup and there’s little doubt that all those turnovers contributed to the loss.
The team committed 12 of those turnovers in the second half against Ohio State including three in the last minute and six seconds of the game, when it was still a four-point contest. Michigan State will need to do a better job eliminating mistakes, especially late, in this week’s contest against Ohio State.
Michigan State has gone 3-3 since losing to Ohio State last month. The team continues to struggle with turnovers, committing a combined 42 in games against rival Michigan and Iowa last week.
Player to Watch
JaQuan Lyle -- The Ohio State guard led the charge in the Buckeyes’ win over Michigan State last month, finishing with 22 points and six assists, but he’s been ice cold lately. The team could use a little heat from him this week in this Big 10 showdown.
Lyle had five three-pointers in the win over Michigan State, also a season high for the sophomore who shoots 38 percent from the three-point line. He went 0-for-5 in the last two game from three-point range and combined for just five points.
He has had three games of 20 points or more this season with his best performance coming against Illinois on January 1st where he finished with 26 points. Lyle is averaging 11.4 points on the season for the Buckeyes.
Free College Basketball ATS Picks
Michigan State is known for playing its best ball at the end of the season, and has been good of late with three wins in its past four outings. Overall, though, there has been a lot of inconsistency on the year and the Spartans can’t be considered in the title hunt with the way they’ve been playing.
Ohio State has been even more disappointing as it is going to be hard-pressed to qualify for March Madness unless it dominates down the stretch. The Buckeyes are lacking a ton of signature wins on the season, and even though Michigan State isn’t ranked, winning this road game would be a nice showing.
While the Buckeyes should be able to keep it close and may come away with the cover, take the Spartans to pick up this victory on their home court.
College Basketball Odds: Michigan State 76, Ohio State 72
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