According to Sports-Reference’s Simple Rating System, a metric that accounts for average point differential and strength of schedule, these Spartans could go down as the most analytically impressive team in program history.Īnd while Winston’s game might not defy physics, he’s still capable of inducing his fair share of double takes.

Winston’s impact even has this team vying for a spot in school lore. He dropped a game-high 27 in a 77-70 victory in Ann Arbor on February 24. The Detroit native scored 18 points in the second half of a come-from-behind, 86-77 win at Ohio State on January 5. Winston has grown into the leader of a Spartans team that sits at 28-6 and ripped off 13 consecutive wins at one point earlier this season. Can He Join the Triple Ones Club? The Ringer Staff’s Extremely Expert 2019 March Madness Brackets The Wins of the Father: Your Guide to Buddy Boeheim, Brad Calipari, and the NCAA Tournament Sons Zion Williamson Is Already a College Legend.

If head coach Tom Izzo’s program is to snap its run of recent March disappointments-it was bounced by 15th-seeded Middle Tennessee State in 2016 and 11th-seeded Syracuse in 2018-it’ll rely on Winston to do it. Last week he was named the AP Big Ten Player of the Year. He’s averaging 18.9 points and 7.6 assists per game, tops on Michigan State in both categories. Spartans junior point guard Cassius Winston hasn’t delivered an array of that-shouldn’t-be-humanly-possible highlights like Williamson, but he’s proved every bit as crucial to his team’s success. 1 overall seed, led by a generational talent in Zion Williamson. If Michigan State reaches this year’s Elite Eight, it’ll likely face off against Duke, the tourney’s no. And yet Sparty was given a tougher draw than its in-state rivals.

They beat Michigan three times, including after rallying from 13 points down in the second half of Sunday’s Big Ten championship game. The Spartans were one of just two teams in the six major basketball conferences to win their regular-season and league tournament titles. 2 seed in the East region of the 2019 NCAA tournament sparked controversy.

Cassius winston