Michigan State Basketball vs. Duke: Game Time, TV, Live Stream
The Michigan State Spartans will conclude a difficult November schedule against the #5 Duke Blue Devils on Tuesday in Durham, N.C.
The Michigan State Spartans (4-3) will take on the #5 Duke Blue Devils (6-1) as part of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge in Durham, N.C. on Tuesday.
The Spartans come into Tuesday’s game at the end of a difficult travel-heavy November schedule. Duke will be the fourth ranked team on Michigan State’s schedule this month, and by the time they land in North Carolina the Spartans will have traveled over 13,000 miles already this season, including trips to New York, Honolulu and the Bahamas.
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The Duke Blue Devils opened the season at #1 in the Preseason AP Poll, a 77-75 loss in the final seconds to #4 Kansas at the Champions Classic in Honolulu—the same event where the Spartans lost to Kentucky—the only blemish on their 6-1 record, which includes a 75-65 win over #21 Rhode Island on Nov. 20.
Duke has one of the most talented rosters in the country, even without three of their star freshmen, Marques Bolden, Harry Giles and Jayson Tatum, and junior Sean Obi, who are all yet to play this season due to injury and are expected to miss Tuesday’s game.
Despite being short-handed, Duke still boasts one of the league’s top starting lineups. Grayson Allen, who Tom Izzo said nearly “single-handedly” beat Michigan State in the 2015 Final Four, was a preseason favorite for the Naismith Award, and for good reason. The junior guard shot 46.6% from the floor last season, including 41.7% from beyond the arc, and averaged 21.6 points. His status for Tuesday is also up in the air after he injured his toe on Saturday against Appalachian State, but there are plenty of guys around him to pick up the slack if he cannot go.
Sophomore guard Luke Kennard currently leads Duke with 17.1 points and 3.9 assists per game while shooting 47.1% overall. Senior Amile Jefferson nearly averages a double-double with 13.6 points and a team-leading 9.4 rebounds per game. With Bolden, Giles and Tatum out, Frank Jackson is the only Blue Devils freshman getting large amounts of playing time but he is making the most of it, averaging 16 points.
Like Michigan State, which is still missing Gavin Schilling and Ben Carter, Duke’s injuries have left them without a lot of size or depth in the paint, which may be the saving grace for the Spartans, who have not played particularly well on the glass so far this year.
The Spartans return to the States after mixed results at the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament in the Bahamas over Thanksgiving week, defeating St. John’s and losing handily to #20 Baylor before holding off Wichita State for third place. Michigan State dropped out of the AP Poll this week, likely in large part due to their 0-3 record versus ranked opponents, although each of those losses took place on neutral courts far from East Lansing.
Miles Bridges continues to impress, leading the Spartans with 17.4 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, but he also averages 3.4 turnovers. Eron Harris has scored in double-digits four of his last five games and Nick Ward is averaging 10.4 points and 5.9 rebounds off the bench despite playing less than 16 minutes per game. Lourawls Nairn returns from the Spartans’ trip to his homeland as the team’s leader in assists with 5.4 per game.
Here are all the details for today’s game:
Michigan State Spartans v. #5 Duke Blue Devils
Cameron Indoor Arena – Durham, N.C.
Game Time: 9:30 p.m.
TV: The game will air live on ESPN, with Dan Shulman, Jay Bilas and Maria Taylor on the call.
Live Stream: The game will available for online streaming with a subscription on WatchESPN.
Radio: Will Tieman and Matt Steigenga will be on the mic for the Spartan Sports Network, which can be streamed here. A full list of over-the-air radio affiliates is available here and the game can be streamed through the SSN Mobile App with a subscription.
Series History: Duke and Michigan State have met 12 times before. Duke leads the series 10-2, including winning their last meeting, 81-61, in the 2015 Final Four.
Line: The Blue Devils are currently 11.5-point favorites and the over/under is 146.