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Thursday Night Links

Final Four: The Ultimate Viewers’ Guide
Mr. Gasaway says to watch out for Kemba Walker.
The Walton method
Travis Walton is watching tape right now.
Learning process: Thabeet tries to keep blocks in bounds
Thabeet says he and Stanley Robinson will rotate on Suton.
Herzog doing his best Thabeet impression
Nice to have a seven-footer on the scout team.
MSU’s Morgan [...]

Sunday is Senior Day.  Here’s your discussion question: What the first word that pops into your head when you hear the name of each of four seniors?
My (alliterative) answers are below.
Goran Suton
Improvement.
Suton’s key tempo-free numbers for the four years he was an active player:

Stat
2005-06
2006-07
2007-08
2008-09

OffRtg
95.0
98.2
113.8
119.2

eFG%
47.0
50.9
55.4
56.6

TO%
25.2
26.1
20.4
19.6

OffReb%
10.0
11.6
13.6
13.8

DefReb%
13.4
19.7
22.3
21.0

While most four-year players show improved efficiency over their careers, you’re not [...]

The Spartans vanquish the Illini 74-66 in a 71-possession game.  StatSheet box score.
I don’t know what it is about this team, but I just can’t get as tense as I’m used to getting late in close games.  Even when Illinois pulled back even seven minutes to go, I had a strange sense of calm about [...]

MSU-Kansas Thoughts
To pay my blogging penance, I watched the full game on videotape this afternoon.  Here’s the rest of the game recap:
Perhaps the most encouraging aspect of the current nine-game winning streak is how everyone in the playing rotation seems to be finding their respective roles.  Eleven players played significant minutes yesterday, and all of [...]

The Spartans triumph over the Longhorns 67-63 in a 66-possession game.  Official box score.
Some stats:

MSU shot 8-17 from the free throw line.
Chris Allen didn’t score a single point.
Raymar Morgan took three shots from the field and turned the ball over 6 times.
Kalin Lucas and Travis Walton shot a combined 7-21 from the field.
Texas pulled down [...]

The Big Ten Geeks have part 1 of their interview with John Gasaway up.  Assists are adverbial!
Tom Izzo says the team is looking “tougher” than he expected through the first three practices!  Kalin Lucas is practicing at both the point and 2-guard.  Delvon Roe is participating in full contact drills, but is being held out [...]

I hadn’t been to Midnight Madness for a few years and I was impressed with the program last night.  They did a great job with the 70s theme (women’s players in 1970s outfits, men’s players in short shorts, VW bus for Izzo’s arrival, funny video about Izzo taking a trip across America to the 1979 [...]