The Mississippi State Bulldogs and Michigan State Spartans face off in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Basketball Tournament. The Mississippi State Bulldogs have seemingly been on the bubble all season long. They have taken down Tennessee twice, but have also dropped games to Georgia Tech and Southern. As for Michigan State, they brought in one of the nation’s top freshman classes, but a flurry of poor play and bad losses caused them to barely sneak into the tournament. With both teams underperforming this season, who will get the opportunity to take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in the Round of 32?
Below, we will preview this NCAA Tournament college basketball game, giving a Mississippi State vs Michigan State prediction and other March Madness expert picks. Which school will win and keep their hopes of winning the championship trophy alive?
Mississippi State vs Michigan State Prediction and March Madness Expert Picks
2024 NCAA Tournament
No. 8 Mississippi State (21-13) vs. No. 9 Michigan State (19-14)
Date: Thursday, March 21, 2024
Time: 12:15 PM EST
Venue: Spectrum Center — Charlotte, NC
Coverage: CBS
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Mississippi State vs Michigan State March Madness Odds
All college basketball betting odds for Kansas vs Samford can be found at BetUS Sportsbook.
Moneyline: Miss St: (Even) | MI State: (-120)
Point Spread: Miss St. +1 (-110) | MI State: -1 (-110)
Total: 130.5 — Over: (-110) | Under: (-110)
KenPom Rankings | Bracketology
KenPom Rankings are from KenPom.com
| Team | Rk | AdjO | AdjD | AdjT |
| Mississippi State | 30 | 113.7 (60) | 95.7 (20) | 67.1 (202) |
| Michigan State | 18 | 113.8 (57) | 93.7 (8) | 65.2 (305) |
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Mississippi State vs Michigan State College Basketball Trends
- Mississippi State is 12-2 in Non-Conference Games this season.
- Michigan State is 8-3 in Non-Conference Games this season.
- The OVER is 16-18 in Mississippi State basketball games this season.
- The OVER is 14-19 in Michigan State basketball games this season.
- Mississippi State is 0-1 in NCAA Tournament games since 2019.
- Michigan State is 3-3 in NCAA Tournament games since 2019.
Mississippi State vs Michigan State Prediction | March Madness Expert Picks
In the 2024 NCAA Tournament, there may not be a more even matchup than Mississippi State vs. Michigan State. Both teams love to play slow and work for the best shot possible. That makes sense with two of the best coaches in the country, Chris Jans for Mississippi State and Tom Izzo with Michigan State. Both teams also make their money on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, Michigan State’s eighth-ranked defense in KenPom is a major reason why they are the 18th-ranked team. The Spartans have given up 70+ points just 13 times this season. As for the Bulldogs, they have given up 70+ points just 14 times this season.
In regards to offensive talent, it is no secret that this favors Michigan State. The Spartans opened the season ranked fourth in the AP Poll. Inconsistency and injuries have plagued them, but with two weeks off, it seems likely that the Spartans will enter the tournament as healthy as possible. Tyson Walker is one of the best scoring guards in the country, putting up 18.2 PPG. Adding in three more double-digit scorers, and Michigan State does have the luxury of not needing to rely on Walker to be the guy. For Mississippi State, the Bulldogs are led by guard Josh Hubbard (17.1 PPG) and forward Tolu Smith (15.2 PPG). Outside of those two, the Bulldogs do not have another double-digit scorer. Mississippi State also has shown times to struggle from the three-point line. At just 32.5% from three, Michigan State’s defense should find success running shooters off of the line and forcing tough inside shots.
Due to Mississippi State’s poor three-point shooting, I am confident that Hall of Famer Tom Izzo can design a game plan to pack the paint and run shooters off of the three-point line to force long twos all game long. Since the Spartans have a more well-rounded offense, I am more confident in siding with them here. If you are in a bracket pool that gives more points for predicting upsets right, then I think you have to pick Michigan State. For our Mississippi State vs Michigan State prediction, we are picking the Michigan State Spartans to win and move on in the NCAA Tournament.
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