Michigan State 2019 March Madness Final Four Betting Preview

Michigan State didn’t just come out of nowhere to roll to the Final Four. They tied with Purdue for the Big Ten regular-season title and, unlike Purdue (who lost in the quarterfinals to Minnesota), they rolled all the way to the Big Ten tournament title as well, beating Michigan by five points. They sit at 32-6 and won their first three games in the tournament by double figures, rolling with relative ease over Bradley (despite an early scare), Minnesota  and LSU, before eliminating Duke by a single point. Next they face Texas Tech, and there are several reasons why you should consider Michigan State when you make your online betting decisions about the Final Four. Take a look at reasons for you to think about the Spartans as national champions, as well as our March Madness odds predictions for Michigan State’s fate.

Michigan State 2019 March Madness Final Four Betting Preview

Might be a new month but we are STILL DANCING 🕺 #Spartans x #FinalFour pic.twitter.com/0KSqXaKCQL

— Michigan State Basketball (@MSU_Basketball) 3 de abril de 2019

2019 Final Four Odds

• Virginia / Currently: 3/2 / Opening: 15/1
• Michigan State / Currently: 7/4 / Opening: 15/1
• Texas Tech / Currently: 4/1 / Opening: 40/1
• Auburn / Currently: 7/1 / Opening: 30/1

Tom Izzo gets the most out of his talent

Joshua Langford went down for the season back in December. Alex Ward missed the last five games of the regular season. Now, the team is without Kyle Ahrens, who went down in the first half of the Big Ten tournament championship game. That didn’t stop the Spartans from taking down Duke, a team with R.J. Barrett and Zion Williamson — two players likely to be drafted in the NBA lottery this summer — on the floor. The Spartans have a fierce camaraderie as a team. When Kenny Goins, who had joined the program as a walk-on, nailed the three-ball to give Michigan State the last lead with 39 seconds left, that meant big redemption for Goins, who had missed so many key shots from downtown. Izzo trusted him to make the shot — and he made it. Izzo is not always positive with his players; in the first round, he started ripping Aaron Henry for poor effort against Bradley in a scene that had point guard Cassius Winston separate the two. But the results speak for themselves.

Cassius Winston might be the best floor leader in the nation

Winston put the team on his back and delivered them from a possible upset by Bradley in the first round, putting up 26 points in the win, and he sealed the win against Duke by evading defenders who were trying to foul him in the last few seconds. He had 20 points and 10 assists against the Blue Devils, playing all 40 minutes of the game. I expect that he will play the entirety of the national semifinal against Texas Tech too.

Michigan State has veteran experience to help them down the stretch

Teams like Duke and Kentucky, which rely on one-and-done systems to recruit the nation’s very best high school players, knowing that they will head to the NBA a year later, tend to wash out of the tournament, often because they lack the experience to deal with pressure. Duke had almost lost in the second round and the Sweet 16 before Michigan State ended their run. Winston and Nick Ward are both juniors, and Goins and Matt McQuaid are seniors. The ability to win as a group instead of running through blue-chip talent that plays more on an individual level has paid off for Michigan State. Can it pay off against Texas Tech?

Can Michigan State go all the way?

The Spartans have not yet faced a defense as stout as the one they will face when they take on Texas Tech. Michigan State and Texas Tech have both beaten Michigan this postseason, but the Spartans only downed the Wolverines by five, while the Red Raiders held Michigan to 16 points in the first half and 44 points for the whole game. One could argue that the Wolverines were more motivated in a rivalry game, but how could Michigan not be motivated in the Big Dance? You have to credit the Red Raiders’ system, and I see Michigan State’s run ending right here, in the Final Four.