The nation’s top team will be at home when the No. 3 Michigan State Spartans (8-0) welcome the Binghamton Bearcats (2-4) to Jack Breslin Student Events Center. The game begins at 12:00 pm ET on Saturday, Dec. 5 and can be seen on ESU and ES3.
The Spartans were victorious over Louisville 71-67 on Wednesday. Denzel Valentine was the game’s leading scorer with 25 points on 7-for-16 shooting. The Bearcats, meanwhile, are coming off a 69-50 win against Colgate on Tuesday. Marlon Beck was the game’s top scorer, accumulating 14 points on 4-for-6 shooting.
Michigan State is a substantial 28-point favorite in this game and the Over/Under (O/U) is set at 139 points. The Spartans have gone 8-0 Straight Up (SU) and 5-2 Against The Spread (ATS). The Spartans have one of the most prolific offenses in the entire nation, averaging 83.2 points per game. The Spartans are one of the best in Division I in terms of three-point field goals, making 8.0 shots per game from beyond the arc. The rebounding edge goes to the Spartans in this matchup, who are one of the top rebounding teams in the nation with an average of 43.4 boards per game. Michigan State is one of the most disciplined teams in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.87. Crossing over to the defensive side of the court, the Michigan State defense has been very good, only giving up 63.1 points per game. The Spartans are the 22nd-best team in the country at blocking shots, averaging 5.9 blocks per game.
This game marks the first time Michigan State and Binghamton have played one another in recent seasons.
Predictions: SU Winner – MSU, ATS Winner – MSU, O/U – Over
Notes
Michigan State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home.
Binghamton averages 64.5 points per game, placing the team just 317th in the nation. Michigan State ranks 41st in points allowed, giving up 63.1 points per game.
Binghamton won its last game by a 19-point margin. In games decided by a margin of 18 points or more, Michigan State is 4-0. Binghamton is 1-0 in blowouts this season.
The Michigan State Spartans have a defensive rating of 93.0 (ranked 50th), while the Binghamton Bearcats have an offensive rating of 90.1 (ranked 332nd).
Michigan State has the 22nd-ranked average field goal percentage at 50.0%. Binghamton has not won a game this season when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage (0-1).
The Binghamton Bearcats rank lower for their field goal percentage (326th) than their effective field goal percentage (310th), while the Michigan State Spartans rank the same for both metrics (22nd).
The Michigan State Spartans top the nation in assists, earning 22.9 per game this season. With their 12.3 assists per game, the Binghamton Bearcats rank just 250th.
The Michigan State Spartans average 5.9 blocks per game, the 22nd-ranked team in the country. The Binghamton Bearcats rank a lowly 187th in blocking with just 3.3 per game.
Michigan State ranks 91st in offensive rebounding. Binghamton ranks 184th in defensive rebounding.
Binghamton makes 6.0 steals per game. In games where it allows 6 or more steals, Michigan State is undefeated at 4-0.
