March 28--WHO -- No. 7 Michigan State (26-11) vs. No. 4 Louisville (27-8)
WHAT: NCAA East regional final, Sunday, 11:20 a.m.
WHERE: Carrier Dome, Syracuse, N.Y. TV: CBS.
UPDATE: Between Michigan State Coach Tom Izzo and Louisville Coach Rick Pitino, there are 13 Final Four appearances and three national championships. Yet this was not a matchup most people expected at the start of the NCAA tournament. Both the Spartans and the Cardinals have peaked in March. In the last two games, Michigan State has weathered the No. 2 seed, Virginia, and the No. 3 seed, Oklahoma. Travis Trice has scored a combined 47 points in those games. The Cardinals' 6-feet-8 forward Montrezl Harrell scored 24 points with seven rebounds in a win over North Carolina State on Friday. On Saturday, Pitino said he and Izzo are friendly. "Our similarities in the way we run our programs, I think, are very stark," he said. "I'm a big fan of his." Both have figured out a way to survive in March. Only one can go to Indianapolis.
STARTERS
Michigan State; Ht; Wt; PPG; P; Louisville; Ht; Wt; PPG
Terry Rozier; 6-1; 190; 17.2; G; Travis Trice; 6-0; 170; 15.3
Quentin Snider; 6-2; 180; 4.1; G; Tum Tum Nairn Jr.; 5-10; 170; 2.2
Wayne Blackshear; 6-5; 215; 11.1; G; Denzel Valentine; 6-5; 220; 14.3
Montrezl Harrell; 6-8; 240; 15.7; F; Branden Dawson; 6-6; 225; 11.9
Mangok Mathiang; 6-10; 220; 2.5; C/F; Gavin Schilling; 6-9; 240; 5.2
RESERVES
Michigan State; Ht; Wt; PPG; P; Louisville; Ht; Wt; PPG
Anton Gill; 6-3; 190; 2.6; G; Bryn Forbes; 6-3; 180; 8.6
Chinani Onuaku; 6-10; 230; 3.0; F; Matt Costello; 6-9; 245; 7.1
