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There’s a Glaring Problem with Michigan State’s Offense

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There’s a Glaring Problem with Michigan State’s Offense

In the Maui Invitational semifinal round, the Michigan State Spartans lost 71-63 to the Memphis Tigers.

The Spartans were unable to win in the second half for various reasons. Memphis had multiple guards who consistently made tough shots, and MSU couldn’t keep up.

Three-point shooting improved, but it still wasn’t enough to withstand the Tigers’ explosive offense. A stretch midway through the second half in which Memphis made every shot proved to be the Spartans’ undoing.

But while most Spartan fans complain about MSU shooting poorly from behind the arc, Tom Izzo needs to solve a larger problem with the team’s half-court offense.

The lack of a consistent big man presence allows opposing teams to easily run zone defenses.

MSU couldn’t get enough out of center Jaxon Kohler, Szymon Zapala and Carson Cooper. Oda is vastly improved from last season, which is a noticeable improvement, but Izzo needs each of them to improve a little more if he wants to have a busy March run.

We saw this clearly at the beginning of the season. If a team plays zone against the Spartans, they will have a hard time sustaining their offensive sets. The best way to beat a zone defense is to create a center in the middle, which allows the rest of the team to move and beat him.

Without Kohler, Zapala and Cooper pointing to the middle for the front guard to initiate post touches on them, the offense looks chaotic and inefficient. As the shot clock winds down, guards dribble around the perimeter before trying to create offense.

Opposing defenses know that MSU does not have a reliable center presence, so they are not concerned that the gravity of the center will distract any zone defenders from their assignments. If a center can demand attention from defenders, it can lead to more open looks from beyond the arc.

Guards can’t go downhill against zone defenses, so the offense can’t flow. When MSU If the guard gets penetration, it leads to things like open three-pointers or Coen Carr dunks.

MSU’s offense could be much better if it can get more production from its center spot. Not necessarily producing boxing scores, but simply knowing how to operate against zone defense can open up so much more.

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