Michigan State: post mortem

That was a bad match-up against a better team, and in the end, Georgia was right there.

Was it a great performance?  Not really.  Too many missed layups.  Long stretches of lethargic basketball.  It was going to take a great game to beat the Spartans, but the Bulldogs were merely ok.

Yet Georgia never quit - not in this game and not all year.  I would give anything to see this team play again on Sunday, and I'm disappointed that won't happen, but I'm proud of those guys.  As aggravating as they were to watch at times, this was one of my favorite Bulldog teams to root for in at least the last decade.

The game:

• Black jerseys?  Come on.  One of the few advantages to being the lower seed is that you get to wear the road unis.  Nothing looks quite as sharp as the road reds.  Wear them!
• To my eyes, Michigan State looks more like a 5 seed.  Here's a list of teams seeded 7 or higher that I would have rather seen in the first round:  West Virginia, Butler, Wichita State, VCU, Iowa, SMU, and Providence.  Don't be surprised to see them give Virginia a good game on Sunday.
• Using ESPN's BPI, Michigan State was a 5 seed, and Georgia was an 8.  Neither of those sound that far off.  It is what it is, though, and you have to play the game you're handed.  Ole Miss dropping out of the top 50 probably dropped Georgia at least one line and landed them a date with the Spartans.
• Georgia certainly came to play.  The back cut by Kenny Gaines that created a layup and then the down screen that Gaines used to pop an open three were just beautiful.
• Georgia's board work was impressive, too.  That's a Michigan State team that rebounds really well, and the Bulldogs generally neutralized them.  Marcus Thornton was an absolute beast on the glass.
• One of the biggest differences in the game was Michigan State's ability to finish through contact.  How many and-1 opportunities did they have?  It felt like 50.  Charles Mann still drives looking for fouls.  The Spartans drive to score.
• Lots of missed layups again.  That's a bad trend that started in the Arkansas game and, hopefully, doesn't carry over to next season.
• The (bad, but understandable) second foul call on Gaines really changed the first half.  Even gimpy, he was Georgia's best asset early.  Not only was it a 3-point play, but it sent Kenny to the bench.  The drop-off from Gaines down to Kenny Paul Geno or Taylor Echols is a precipitous one, and Georgia struggled to get open looks for the rest of the half.
• Thornton finished his career with a double-double, including 8/8 from the free throw line.  He was feisty all day.  He clearly wasn't ready to go home.
• Djurisic was quieter, but did pull down 12 rebounds.  He was also (as usual) a steadying influence on the floor.
• I continue to believe the future is bright with Yante Maten.  He was very quiet in his 13 minutes, but the pieces are clearly there.  An offseason in the weight room and another fall spent banging on Jonas Hayes in the paint will do him a lot of good.  His ceiling is high.
• J.J. Frazier was never quite the same after he hurt his wrist and broke the bone in his face.  Understandable.  I'm already excited to have him back whole next season.
• Charles Mann had a very Charles Mann game, didn't he?  A lot of good, a smattering of bad.  How hard he works in the offseason will go a long way to determining how and when next season ends.
• I have to say it one more time:  these guys never quit.  A lesser team would have packed it in down 12 with a minute and a half left.  Instead, there was Georgia, down 3 with :20 to go.  Good fight.

Tom Izzo and his Michigan State Spartans knocked our Bulldogs out of the tournament.  It stinks, but it's nothing to hang your head over.  Enjoy the rest of the tournament.  Come Monday, we'll start talking about what's next.  It's never too early to start thinking about next season.  College basketball is all about next season.