It’s several hours before tip-off and I am already tense. The Spartans Weblog has their take on the game. I appreciate the bias (“MSU should be prepared, having played 20 games in the most physical conference in the land”), and the focus on tempo-free stats. That said there is some fun with myopia. There’s a bit of dismissal of Pitt’s defense as not being as good as the media portrays based on the stats, while downplaying the Spartans own turnover problems reflected in the stats because they have been under control recently. Pitt’s defense, in case they hadn’t noticed, has picked up in the last couple of weeks.

I’m not sure either side is sure what to expect from their teams. Having seen the Spartans several times this season, they do have a tendency to be very, very sloppy with the ball. When that happens, they tend to get frustrated and out of sync. Pitt has been good at forcing turnovers this season. The Spartans have a big advantage in depth. If the game is called tight, Pitt is at a bigger disadvantage.

The major theme for this game has been both teams’ reputation for playing defense. Hard-nosed, physical, brutal, tough, defense. We get it. Oh, and physical practices.

For Michigan State it’s the “war drill.” A ball rolls onto the floor and the players go after it. There are no fouls called. Contact is demanded. Bloody noses and lips are often souvenirs.

“It’s pretty intense,” Spartans guard Drew Neitzel said.For Pittsburgh, it used to be called the “war drill.” Now it’s just the “box-out drill,” but the same anarchic principles apply. Two players trying to prevent two other players from getting a rebound. Until you get two boards in a row, you do not leave the drill. Broken nose or not.

“That can get real brutal,” Panthers guard Sam Young said.

Of course, both coaches have downplayed the whole thing.

Izzo is a hell of a coach. No denying the obvious. Scary how successful he has been in this second round. He’s only lost twice in the round of 32 in 13 tries. Yeah, that makes me nervous even if technically it should have no bearing on this game.
Quickly to the player pieces. A couple on DeJuan Blair — hometown hero and as a vital part of the team as a freshman.

Sam Young gets the puff piece, including his ability for playing the piano — which now seems to be a requirement to be the starting power forward at Pitt.
Levance Fields gets plenty of love as he is hot and healthy. For this week he has drawn Mateen Cleaves and Khalid El-Amin comparisons.

Hopefully no one has had time to read their press clippings the last couple days.