Christie's breakthrough game a sign of things to come?

Detroit - If Tuesday night’s performance from Michigan State guard Max Christie is any indication of things to come, Spartan fans should be really excited about what’s in store for their standout freshman sharpshooter down the road. Christie tied for the team-high with 17 points to lead the Spartans in scoring for the third time in his young career and even more impressive was how he did it.

He was extremely efficient, shooting 6-of-8 from the field including 4-of-6 from the 3-point line in the No. 10 Spartans 90-78 victory over the Oakland Grizzlies at Little Caesars Arena Tuesday night.

“Nobody has seen the real Max Christie yet,” said MSU coach Tom Izzo, whose team improved to 10-2 overall (2-0 Big Ten) and is 20-0 in its friendly rivalry against Oakland coach Greg Kampe and his Grizzlies, who are now 7-4 overall (2-0 Horizon League).

Izzo has been saying that the Spartans are a good team, and would go up a notch when - not if - Christie began playing like he is capable.

Christie got MSU off to a quick start against the Grizzlies, connecting on his first 3-point attempt just :10 seconds after Marcus Bingham won the jump ball and again less than two minutes later on an open look during a Spartan fast break.

Christie’s quick six points capped off an 8-0 run to start the game for MSU, but he didn’t take another shot until the final two minutes of the first half.

“We have to get him more shots,” Izzo said. ”He had a great week of practice and he hit that first one. I don’t think it’s anything he is changing or doing different. It was just a matter of getting adjusted and confident.”

Christie is regarded as the Spartans purest deep shooter but came into the game shooting the long ball at a puzzling 26.1% clip (12-of-46) from deep.

Perhaps it was the extended time off and extra work in the gym that made the difference for Christie on Tuesday night. Hitting his first two looks probably didn’t hurt either.

“I think the break certainly helped, just so I could reset myself and focus myself and get mentally ready for this game,” said Christie. “When I hit those first shots it felt really good because I’ve been working on my shot relentlessly. Even though I may not have been making them, I still had the confidence to shoot those first two and they both fell, so I felt good for sure.”

Christie played over 15 minutes in each half against the Grizzlies, but never really forced the issue. He filled the wings in transition, passed up numerous open looks to get a teammate a better shot, rebounded (4) and defended (1 block) well, and finished +14 in +/- for the night.

He highlighted his stellar performance with a high-flying two-handed fast-break dunk in the final minute of the game after a steal and assists from MSU freshman Jadin Akins.

The dunk put a big smile on Christie’s face as the crowd reached a fevered pitch and put a final stamp on the Spartans victory.

“It was definitely electric for sure,” said Christie. “The crowd got really loud and it was super fun playing in a pro arena.”

Now, the second part of Izzo’s high-ceiling prophecy needs to take shape - the expected rise of Joey Hauser. Hauser is regarded as MSU’s second-best shooter, although Malik Hall and Tyson Walker are shooting outrageous percentages from 3-point range thus far. If Michigan State can eventually get 40-plus percent shooting from Hauser, this team’s horsepower will continue to grow.

CHASING CAIN: Oakland senior transfer Jamal Cain was expected to and turned out to be a major problem for the Spartans against the Grizzlies.

MSU threw everything it had at Cain, switching ball screens with everyone from Christie to Bingham taking a shot at slowing the lanky Grizzlies guard/forward from attacking the rim.

“In the scouting report he was number one for sure,” said Christie. “Our game plan defensively was to make all his shots tough. He got some easy ones but I thought we did a good job for the most part.”

Cain’s 6-foot-7 frame, guard-like ball skills, and silky shooting stroke were a constant threat as he played every minute of the game for the Grizzlies. He finished just shy of his per-game average with 20 points despite constant harassment from any Spartan in his area.

“Michigan State has good guards, they are quick and strong,” said Cain. “I knew it was going to be a challenge.”

Michigan State had to decide whether to put a quick-footed guard on Cain, or someone with size. Cain has guard skills but is usually the second tallest player on the court for the Grizzlies, and can post-up smaller defenders.

After beginning the game with Christie on Cain, Michigan State spent most of the night putting a stretch four on him - with Malik Hall and Joey Hauser taking turns guarding him. Hall is quicker than Hauser and had more success.

However, some serious questions arose after Hall was briefly knocked out of the game at the end of the first half after receiving a cut to head due to an Oakland elbow. That injury came just before halftime, giving MSU’s team doctors time to give Hall stitches and get him court-ready without losing much game time.

MSU was able to keep Cain from going off by switching almost everything and staying aware of where Cain was on the floor all game long.

“I thought he had to work for every one of them,” said Izzo of Cain’s opportunities. “I was pleased. We put a lot, a lot, a lot into Cain.”

RUN SPARTY RUN: MSU came into the game averaging 74 points per game offensively and matched its season-high against the Grizzlies with 90 points including a 15-6 advantage in fast-break points.

MSU was quick to race down the floor offensively on defensive rebounds or made baskets and occasionally got shots up in no time or as Kampe called it “5 seconds or less.”

"Scoring the ball is always our plan, to get a lot of shots up, play fast. And we started it right from the jump ball, just playing fast, playing defense," said MSU point guard Tyson Walker, who had his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 assists before fouling out in the final two minutes. "And that's what led to us scoring and making shots, getting offensive rebounds, getting good kick-out shots. That's how we scored 90 points."