Branden Dawson, Derrick Nix and the Spartans will fall in the Elite Eight, ESPN's Jay Bilas predicts. (Dale G. Young / Detroit News)
ESPN college basketball guru Jay Bilas says Michigan State will lose to Louisville in the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight while Michigan will not even get out of the opening weekend at The Palace.
Using the "cerebral powers of The Bilastrator," Bilas predicts an opening-weekend wins over Valparaiso and Memphis for the No. 3-seeded Spartans. Next Bilas says MSU will take care of No. 2 Duke in the stacked Midwest Region before falling to No. 1 Louisville.
"Louisville plays a zone defense that changes to man-to-man toward the end of the clock or when the ball goes inside," Bilas writes of his projected MSU-Louisville matchup. "The Cardinals create turnovers and a chaotic game, and they will win and move to the Final Four."
As for the No. 4-seeded Wolverines, it's not such a promising outlook. Bilas says they will beat South Dakota State before falling to No. 5VCU: "The Rams can turn Michigan over, and the difference will be knocking down open shots."
Bilas' Final Four: Louisville over Ohio State and Indiana over VCU in the semifinals, and Louisville over Indiana in the championship game.
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