Le Journal

This is the big one! Spartans Vs. Blue Devils. Izzo Vs. Krzyzewski Scheyer. Green Vs. Blue. MSU and Duke will clash in the Breslin Center to see who can remain undefeated. Game is at Noon and airing on FOX. I am going to be there and hopefully some of you will too. Gonna be a great game. I expect at least 700 comments here. Let me hear you. Putting this here because I did not have a football article to put this in. Today is Championship Saturday for college football and the TOC writers have to finish our predictions to see who will get bragging rights. At the end of the regular season, the standings are: Mike: 42-22; Steve: 43-21; Lucas: 36-28; O: 40-22. With only four games to predict, this is pretty much down to Mike and Steve. Here are the four big conference championship games today. 1. #4 Texas Tech Vs. #11 BYU Mike: Texas Tech Steve: Texas Tech Lucas: BYU O: Texas Tech 2. #3 Georgia Vs. #9 Alabama Mike: Georgia Steve: Alabama Lucas: Georgia O: Georgia 3. #17 Virginia Vs. Duke Mike: Virginia Steve: Virginia Lucas: Virginia O: Virginia 4. #1 Ohio State Vs. #2 Indiana Mike: OSU Steve: OSU Lucas: Indiana O: OSU So basically, Steve won, but Mike can tie him if Georgia beats Alabama.

It is going to be a clash of the titans on Saturday at the Breslin Center when a pair of top ten blue blood teams square off with their perfect records on the line. The game is at Noon ET and will be televised on FOX. It is easy to say that Duke Basketball has been Michigan State’s biggest roadblock throughout the Izzo years. In our coach’s career, MSU has gone 3-14 against the Blue Devils, and that includes losing to them four times in the NCAA Tournament. Even though Duke is no longer coached by Mike Krzyzewski (I would not be surprised to see him in the audience on Saturday), their new coach, Jon Scheyer, has picked up where his predecessor left off when he got the win in the 2023 Champions Classic. But as is the case in college basketball, each year is a new team. We already know about the new look of this year’s Spartans. Now let’s get into the Blue Devils 2025-26 squad. Unless you have been living under a rock, then you know the star of the show is Cameron Boozer. Nine games into his collegiate career, the Blue Devil legacy is averaging 23.6 points per game, tied for 2nd in the country. Amazingly, Cameron (his father definitely named him after Duke’s home stadium, right?) also leads Duke in rebounds (9.3), assists (3.7), and steals (1.7). He is shooting the ball at a 56.2% rate including 37.5% on his 3s. He will most likely be named player of the year when it is all said and done and go on to be the first pick in the next NBA Draft. What we need to determine is if Duke is a one-man show or if there are other names that could give MSU some issues. Outside of Boozer, three other players have had one game where they led the team in scoring. Patrick Ngongba and Isaiah Evans, who both are averaging 12.6 PPG, each did it once, as did Dame Sarr (6.7 PPG) when he put up 19 against Army. Duke matches MSU in depth. They are playing nine guys who are averaging at least 13 minutes a game, six of whom are over 20, and all 9 are averaging at least 5 points per game. To compare that to MSU, we have nine guys averaging at least 12 minutes (11.9 to be exact), but only 7 players above that 5 PPG threshold. That accounts for the difference in Duke’s 89.1 PPG to MSU’s 78.6. And if Duke’s offensive prowess, 32nd nationally, was not enough to worry you, there is the Blue Devil defense to contend with. Duke only gives up 59.6 points to their opponents, which is fourth in the NCAA, and a tad better than MSU’s 6th ranked defense of 60.4. In rebounds, steals, and blocks, Duke’s stats are all slightly better than MSU’s. But here is where context comes into play. I am going to say that MSU’s schedule has been tougher thus far. I am going to look at the NET Rankings of the teams on Duke and MSU’s respective schedules. Duke has played five non-major programs so far this season: Indiana State (212), Western Carolina (268), Howard (305), Army (320), and Niagara (343). Those five teams have an average NET of 289.6. MSU’s four non-major opponents were Colgate (145), San Jose State (257), Detroit (292), and East Carolina (300). That average is 248.5, a difference of 41 spots on the scale. MSU has played tougher non-major opponents. But let’s also look at the harder teams on each’s schedule. Duke has triumphs over Kansas (21), Florida (26), and Texas (94), while MSU has beaten North Carolina (13), Kentucky (20), and Iowa (34). Both teams beat Arkansas (33) so I did not factor in the Razorbacks. Among those majors, Duke’s opponents have an average NET of 47; MSU’s top opponents sit at 22.3, a difference of nearly 25 spots. MSU has played the better major conference teams as well. And to take this a step further, Duke’s margin of victory in their 3 major conference games (excluding Arkansas) has been 9.33 points. Michigan State has beaten their 3 major conference opponents (excluding Arkansas) by 17.33 points. Let’s get back to the players in this game. Over the years, we have seen many examples of an opposing player recording a career high against the…

One of my favorite rocks in my collection is a Jack Hills zircon, a piece so old it predates the Earth having water and a moon. It doesn’t sparkle or shine or light up under UV light the way other rocks do. Doesn’t display different colors depending on where you illuminate it. It doesn’t “do” anything. It simply is what it is. Enduring billions of years of erosion is its most striking feature. The New York Knicks defeated the Charlotte Hornets 119-104 last night at Madison Square Garden. Hardly news, a team that entered the night 10-1 at home knocking off one now 1-10 on the road. Knicks fans dream of a tickertape parade in June; Hornets fans fantasize about ping pong balls in May. The Knicks have won four playoff series since 2023; the Hornets have won four, ever, none since 2002. You know who’s sixth all-time in win shares in Hornets history? Cody Zeller. Seventh is Anthony Mason. They stink, they’ve stunk, they always have, they always will. No alarms and no surprises. In the NBA, such constancy is so beyond striking as to seem alien. If Charlotte’s history of losing landed in a field, depending on your nature you’d either sell it ASAP to the highest bidder or call in the feds to examine it. The Association is not a safe space for constancy. Just take a look at light night’s scores. The Cavaliers lost at home to the Trail Blazers, Cleveland’s 10th loss of the season. They didn’t lose their 10th game last year until February. The Pistons, a bizarrely popular Finals dark horse candidate — at least on this website — raced out to a 15-2 record but have since dropped two of three, including last night to the suddenly Giannis-less Bucks. Remember when Kings fans were lighting the beam? Were we ever so young? Sacramento fell to 5-17 after getting thumped by Houston, who themselves went from 60 losses to 52 wins in only two years. And the Clippers won, a headline you’ll probably see less and less of as the year moves on. It’s worthwhile as a Knick fan to appreciate the plights of the Kings and Clippers, if only to remind ourselves of how far we’ve come and how fast it can all disappear. Not too long ago — like, literally a year — the Kings featured De’Aaron Fox and Coach of the Year Mike Brown; way back in 2023 they sported the most efficient offense in league history. Today the beam is dim and forgotten. Their offense is 28th. After signing Dennis Schröder to be their sad-trombone point guard follow-up to Fox, the Kings have since benched him in favor of Russell Westbrook, who is like the whole orchestra farting and somehow blaming the audience for it. That’s Russ at 37, mind you. Thinking he’s the answer is like the New York football Giants thinking Abdul Carter sleeps in too much and replacing him with Rip Van Winkle. Did you know the last time the Clippers had a losing season was Amar’e Stoudemire’s debut year in New York? Since then, every other team in the NBA has had a sub-.500 campaign — except for the Los Angeles Nets! If someone ever asks you to define “irony” and you’re stuck, bust out that fact: the franchise that was Losers Incarnate for 30 years — the worst-run operation not just in the NBA, but all of pro sports — changed into a clockwork of competence? That would be the opposite of a reasonable expectation. That would be irony. This season? With Kawhi Leonard pulling a Richard Cantarella no-show gig under Steve Ballmer’s basketball Bonnano family? And Chris Paul getting whacked in the middle of the night? Suffice it to say: botching things is the Clipper way and the family seems desperate to get back to business. Once upon a time, the Hornets were the Kings. They were the Clippers. The difference? Charlotte never pretended to be anyone else. When the 2001-02 season ended, the Hornets had just finished their 10th straight season of winning at least half their games. In 23 since, they’ve been .500 or better four times. Never in consecutive years. Haven’t won 50 games since Seinfeld was airing new episodes. On May 20,…

MSU hockey has a home and home this weekend with the despised team from down the road. A sweep this weekend would almost guarantee a vault over Wisconsin and a take back of number one in the rankings. The Spartans got back on the right track over Thanksgiving by sweeping Colgate at home while the weasels took care of Harvard. Here are a few keys the Spartans need to take the weekend. The weasels can score. They have are averaging 5.1 goals a game compared to MSU’s 3.6. They have 3 players in Will Horcoff, Michael Hage and T.J. Hughes who are tied for the lead in points this season with 26. Horcoff leads the nation in goals at 18. Now um’s goal average is definitely inflated due to a 10 goal game against Robert Morris and a 7 goal game against Mercyhurst. They have have had trouble against better teams this season. Western and Wisconsin both gave them some trouble. The weasels have also not faced a team with the caliber of talent in all aspects of the game as MSU. If MSU plays smart hockey and takes care of the puck, they will have their chances. Augustine will need to be on his A game but he can absolutely shut it down. He has historically played quite well against corn and navy. The weasels have also been successful on the power play this season. This could be problematic for MSU as they have spent some time in the box. The Spartans are going to need to keep their cool in both games that will undoubtedly be chippy. There is still bad blood from last years Battle in the D that was loaded with penalties. The difference with the Spartans this year is they are much more physical. The physicality on top of the speed will be important for MSU to take control of the game. MSU has rallied around each other when needed this season. Everyone in East Lansing knows the sportsmanship of weasels. Expect them to play dirty and the Spartans will need to knock them in the face when the clean opportunity presents itself. The blue-collar, gritty physical play has been a part of MSU’s identity all year. They need that this weekend, but they need it with discipline. Stay full strength. On the flip side, MSU will need to capitalize on power play opportunities. Defensive depth has been strong all season and that is where I am predicting MSU benefits this weekend. The defense will help convert on the advantage and be strong in the kill. They will need to limit shots on goal and be strong on face-offs in the defensive zone. Defensive depth will be the difference maker. Friday night’s game at Munn will be on BTN at 8:30 and Saturday’s contest in ann arbor will be on B1G+ at 7:00. MSU will look to get momentum quickly and get the crowd going. I think MSU is irritated from the Wisconsin losses and the drop to 3 in the rankings. A split is important, but I think MSU walks away with a dominant sweep and reminds the hockey world who is taking it all this year. What do you think? Leave a comment with your weekend predictions and Go Green!