March Madness has now reached the Sweet 16 stage of the tournament after starting out with 64 teams. In this round, the No. 2 UConn Huskies face off against the No. 3 Michigan State Spartans in what should be a very closely contested matchup. While the Huskies had a dominant win against the banged up UCLA Bruins in the second round, Michigan escaped a close game against Louisville.
Both teams have had dominant seasons, but only one moves on to the Elite Eight. UConn was initially projected to be a No. 1 seed but fell to No. 2 after losing to St. John’s in the Big East final, while the Spartans were upset by the team UConn just beat, the UCLA Bruins, in the Big Ten Tournament.
UConn vs. Michigan State March Madness Sweet 16 Projected Starting Lineups
UConn Huskies
- G Malachi Smith
- F Alex Karaban
- C Tarris Reed Jr.
- G Solo Ball
- G Braylon Mullins
Michigan State Spartans
- C Carson Cooper
- F Jaxon Kohler
- F Coen Carr
- G Jeremy Fears Jr.
- F Jordan Scott
UConn, like their women’s team, is full of stars, and anybody in their starting five could go off and carry any team, such as Alex Karaban and Tarris Reed Jr. As for Michigan State, the Spartans also have a stacked lineup with Coen Carr, Jeremy Fears Jr. and Jaxon Kohler, with the three of them coming off double-digit performances against Louisville.
UConn vs. Michigan State March Madness Sweet 16 Injury Report
UConn Huskies
- F Jaylin Stewart: Questionable, knee
Michigan State Spartans
- G Denham Wojcik: Questionable, shoulder
- G Divine Ugochukwu: Out, foot
- F Kaleb Glenn: Out, knee
Michigan State will come in a lot more banged up than UConn, with only Jaylin Stewart possibly not playing because of an injured knee for the Huskies. Ugochukwu and Glenn, both key players, have been ruled out while Wojcik will possibly be able to return as he is dealing with a shoulder injury.
UConn vs. Michigan State March Madness Sweet 16 Prediction
Michigan State and UConn have had their ups and downs this year, having excellent seasons while also losing to teams that they should have been able to beat. However, this one should go to the Huskies, as they have been a lot more consistent than the Spartans this season.
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