Michigan State hopes it can use its depth at guard to contain New Mexico’s Donovan Dent

CLEVELAND (AP) — Michigan State has emphasized strength in numbers all season, with 10 players averaging at least 10 minutes per game.

The Spartans are hoping their depth, especially in the backcourt, can help them shut down one of the nation’s top guards in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

New Mexico’s Donovan Dent enters Sunday’s South Region matchup in Cleveland with seven straight games of at least 20 points and five assists. Dent, the Mountain West Player of the Year, is averaging 20.6 points and 6.4 assists — the only Division I player with at least 20 and 6 in those categories.

“I just feel like throwing different guards at them is going to frustrate them, so we’ve just got to guard and then make them guard,” Spartans junior Tre Holloman said.

Dent had 21 points and six assists in Friday night’s 75-66 win over Marquette. He had 11 of the Lobos’ 22 points in the final nine minutes as No. 10 seed New Mexico (28-6) picked up its first NCAA Tournament victory in 13 years.

Dent also had eight turnovers, but coach Richard Pitino — who will try to advance farther in this year’s tournament than his dad, St. John’s coach Rick Pitino — didn’t think that would carry over.

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“He always rebounds pretty well from that. You’ve got to give Marquette credit; they’re physical. Stevie Mitchell is just as good as it gets at on-the-ball defense and they had a great plan for Donovan,” Pitino said. “I thought as the game went on, he got better and better, so he was able to adjust and adapt a little bit. He’s been so very, very consistent in the three games or the three years I’ve had him, but he’ll learn from them.”

Senior Jaden Akins — a Big Ten all-defensive team selection — is likely to draw the assignment of guarding Dent.

Sunday’s slate

The Lobos and Mississippi will be trying to end long stretches of failing to reach the Sweet 16.

New Mexico has the most second-round appearances without advancing to the second weekend of March Madness since the field was expanded to 64 teams in 1985 with six. Michigan State (27-7) has made 17 Sweet 16 trips in the expanded field, including 15 under coach Tom Izzo.

Ole Miss (23-11) faces Iowa State (25-9) in Milwaukee. The sixth-seeded Rebels are in the field for the first time in six years and have not been to a regional semifinal since 2001.

Sunday’s winners will meet Friday night in Atlanta.

Former Big 12 foes meet again

Iowa State’s T.J. Otzelberger split a pair of games with Chris Beard’s Texas teams during the 2021-22 season. So he has a pretty good idea what to expect now that he’s facing off with a Beard-coached team again in Ole Miss.

“His teams always exemplify tremendous toughness and togetherness, and I think that shows,” Otzelberger said. “Defensively, they’re a very connected team. They communicate well. They play for one another on that side of the floor, most definitely. I think offensively the way they move and share the basketball, some of the motion concepts, those are similar things that he did that made him successful as a coach at all the places he’s been.”

Ole Miss forward Malik Dia can vouch for the ways Beard demands toughness.

“Coach Beard is probably the most intense coach I’ve ever played for, and I don’t mean that in a bad way,” Dia said. “That’s a great thing. I think he’s brought the best out in me each and every day. I can never say there’s a day that I can come in and be chill or cool. He’s going to get the most out of me every day. And if he sees that we’re not bringing it, he’s definitely going to get it out of you.”

Dia is on his third team in as many seasons, joining Ole Miss after spending 2022-23 at Vanderbilt and 2023-24 at Belmont.

“Not any knock on the past schools I was at, but transitioning from Belmont to Ole Miss with coach Beard is super different,” Dia said. “I feel like a lot more things are ran a lot more effectively here and things are going as planned, and coach Beard is going to make sure everything is right.”

Beard said Ole Miss will have to be as tough as possible simply to match Iowa State.

“Their team has an identity, doesn’t take long to figure it out,” Beard said. “They’re physical. They’re connected. They’re hard-playing guys. I think it’s a great coaching fit: T.J. with Iowa State.”

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AP Sports Writer Steve Megargee in Milwaukee contributed to this report.

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