What To Look For

* Michigan State vs. Syracuse: Top-seeded Michigan State got here by beating Valparaiso by 33 points and Utah by 12, and by driving about an hour. “Well, it’s not our home court, so I might as well tell everybody that now, to answer most of the questions,” Coach Tom Izzo said. Not that he’d rather be someplace else. The Spartans are 1-1 at the Palace of Auburn Hills, losing to Nevada Las Vegas in 1990 and beating Arkansas in 1995, and earned the right for another appearance by winning 11 of their last 12 games. Their only loss was on the road in overtime against then-No. 16 Indiana. And then there’s Syracuse. It’s not possible to back into the Sweet 16, but the Orangemen have hardly looked formidable since their 19-0 start, going 7-5 since then and advancing from the Cleveland sub-regional only after edging limping Kentucky by two. “Once a streak gets going, your confidence grows, you win those close games and you make good plays,” Coach Jim Boeheim said. “At the end of the season, we weren’t making the plays.” The pressure will be on Syracuse center Etan Thomas to be a factor against the waves of Spartans that crash the boards. Michigan State’s other assets are experience and defense--it was ninth in the nation in scoring defense and only three opponents have bettered 50% shooting. The unexpected boost has been Mateen Cleaves, only 42.9% from the field overall, making 47% of his shots the last 11 games. Boeheim needs one more victory to move past Jerry Tarkanian for eighth place on the all-time Division I tournament winning list. This is the first meeting between the teams since 1977.