After a hard fought second half that saw the Spartans (3-3) fall short against the No. 3 Arizona Wildcats, Michigan State returns home to the friendly confides of the Breslin Center to take on the Georgia Southern Eagles (0-6) at 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time on the Big Ten Network.

The Eagles are winless on the year and enter the matchup coming off a 93-76 loss to Northeastern. This is a great chance for the Spartans to get back into the win column at home against an inferior opponent.

Michigan State: Depth Chart and State of the Team

1 - A.J. Hoggard (6’4” Sr.), Tre Holloman (6’2” So.)

2 - Tyson Walker (6’0” Graduate Sr.), Jeremy Fears Jr. (6'2" Fr.)

3 - Jaden Akins (6’4” Jr.), Coen Carr (6’5” Fr.), Gehrig Normand (6'5" Fr.)

4 - Malik Hall (6’8” Graduate Sr.), Xavier Booker (6'11" Fr.)

5 - Carson Cooper (6’11” So.), Mady Sissoko (6’9” Sr.)

Injured: Jaxon Kohler (6’9” So.)

Rankings & Ratings: No. N/A (AP), No. N/A (Coaches), N/A (NET), No.20 (Kenpom), No.15 (Barttorvik)

After a very lackluster first half that saw the Wildcats get out to a big lead, it seemed all but certain that Arizona would run away with the Thanksgiving Day matchup in the desert. U of A was hitting on all cylinders and MSU looked sluggish and not up for the challenge. This prompted head coach Tom Izzo to bench two of his starters, A.J. Hoggard and Jaden Akins, for most of the first half.

The benching seemed to work wonders for the Spartans as they came out a different team in the second half and went on a run that was sparked by the players that were benched in the first half. 15 second half points from Hoggard and 12 second half points from Akins spurred a run that saw the Spartans take a lead late in the second half.

It was not just the offense that picked up on the second half, either. The defensive intensity was cranked up as well. There were also some lineup changes, particularly going small ball with freshman Coen Carr at the center spot. The changeups seemed to turn the tide in Michigan State's direction.

In the end the comeback effort came up short as the Wildcats were able to rally and make a few more plays down the stretch to secure the victory. Moral victories never show up on the records page of basketball teams, but the Spartans most definitely can take things from the second half of the Arizona game and build on them as they move closer and closer to Big Ten play.

Georgia Southern: Depth Chart and State of the Team

1 - Tyren Moore (5'11" Sr.), Malik Tidwell (5'11 Sr.)

2 - Jamar Franklin (6'3" So.), Eren Banks (6'4" Fr.)

3 - Deuce Dean (6'4" Sr.), Derrick Harris Jr. (6'3" So.)

4 - Collin Kuhl (6'7" Fr.), Nate Brafford (6'9" So.)

5 - Avante Parker (6'9" Fr.)

Injured: Cam Bryant (6'7" Sr.)

Rankings & Ratings: No. N/A (AP), No. N/A (Coaches), N/A (NET), No.322 (Kenpom), No.302 (Barttorvik)

Georgia Southern has yet to record a win this season as the team currently sits at 0-6 on the young season. The Eagles were picked to finish 11th in the Sun Belt Conference this season (the same conference as James Madison).

GSU is averaging 70 points on offense, which ranks it in the 250’s on KenPom, while the team surrenders around 85 points per game, good for No. 356 defensively on KenPom.

The Eagles are led in scoring by senior Deuce Dean who averages 12.8 points per game and is second on the team in both assists (10) and steals (6) as well. The Eagles are a very balanced team as they have seven players who average more than 20 minutes per game and also average at least six points a game.

Complimenting Dean are two other guards, Jamar Franklin and Tyren Moore. Both of late have picked up the scoring slack with Dean being in a slump the last two games.

In the frontcourt the Eagles are young, but they have some promising players in freshmen Collin Kuhl and Avante Parker. Kuhl has intriguing size but is a project at this point, while Avante Parker is leading his team in rebounding with five a game.

The frontcourt has silently improved -- even if it is just a little -- every game, so it can be expected to come out and play hard.

Quite simply put at this stage of the season, Georgia Southern is a team that doesn’t belong on the same court as Michigan State. The Spartans are miles better than the Eagles, both offensively and defensively. GSU is not only 0-6, but it hasn't been particularly competitive in any of its games either. I expect the Spartans to dominate on their home floor and get back in the win column and above .500 on the young season.

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