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Memphis, Michigan St. aim for "Elite Eight" berth

Mar 28, 2008 - 2:20 PM No. 5 Michigan St (27-8) at No. 1 Memphis (35-1) 9:57 pm EDT

HOUSTON (Ticker) - Not often does Michigan State's heralded backcourt of Drew Neitzel and Raymar Morgan meet their match. On Friday, that duo may get their toughest test to date.

Two of the top programs in the country meet for just the second time ever when the fifth-seeded Spartans battle top-seeded Memphis on Friday in a NCAA Tournament regional semifinal contest.

In Chris Douglas-Roberts and freshman sensation Derrick Rose, the Tigers feature a backcourt that may be as good as any in the nation. Through two Tournament games, the duo is averaging a combined 37 points in wins over Texas-Arlington and Mississippi State.

They each poured in 17 points in Sunday's 77-74 win over the Bulldogs, a game in which the Tigers got two late free throws from Douglas-Roberts to cement the win. Joey Dorsey added 13 points and 12 rebounds to help provide Memphis with a 45-37 edge on the boards, including 19 offensive rebounds that led to 22 second-chance points.

As potent as their offense is (79.8 points per game), Memphis' defense may be just as good as it ranks seventh in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.385), eighth in blocks per game (6.2). The Tigers force 16.3 turnovers per game and are the 15th-best rebounding team in the nation, averaging 43.5 boards for the season.

Those numbers figure to be tested against a Michigan State team that has committed 12 or fewer turnovers in eight of its last 10 games and shot 48 percent in its two Tournament wins.

Much of that success can be attributed to the leadership of Neitzel and Morgan. While Morgan, their leading scorer, was held to four points in Saturday's 65-54 victory over Pittsburgh, Neitzel exploded for 21 and freshman Kalin Lucas added 19.

"This is it; this is my last run," Neitzel said. "So I don't want to have any regrets. I just want to go out there and be aggressive and play the game the way I have my whole life. And that's aggressive, take shots."

Like Memphis, strong defense and rebounding are trademarks of the Spartans. This season, they are holding their opponents to 40 percent shooting from the field and outrebounding the opposition by 7.3 rebounds per game, the eighth-best mark in the nation.