Sweet 16: No. 1 Memphis vs. No. 5 Michigan St.

No. 1 seed Memphis and No. 5 seed Michigan State tangle in the South Region semifinal Friday night in Houston. The Tigers have been ranked near the top of the polls all season and are currently riding a nine-game winning streak. The Spartans enter their seventh Sweet Sixteen in the past 11 seasons, fresh off impressive victories over Temple and Pitt.

The strength of each team starts with the coaching. Memphis coach John Calipari has a 20-8 record in NCAA Tournament play and has advanced to the Sweet Sixteen six times. Tom Izzo is 26-9 in the NCAA Tournament, including four Final Fours and the 2000 National Championship.

The Memphis resume is second to none. In the NCAA Tournament the Tigers defeated No. 16 seed UT Arlington 87-63 in the first round and defeated No. 8 seed Mississippi State 77-74 in Round 2. Memphis went undefeated in Conference USA play, winning the regular season and tournament championships. The Tigers are 10-1 against the tournament field including victories over Arizona, Georgetown, Gonzaga and Connecticut. Their lone loss was against Tennessee.

Memphis has an outstanding mix of athletes and dynamic scorers but the Tigers' strength starts on the defensive end. They are one of the best defensive teams in college basketball. Memphis is seventh nationally in field goal percentage defense (.385) and eighth in blocked shots with 6.2 per game. The Tigers force 16.3 turnover per game including 8.5 steals.

Freshman point guard Derrick Rose (14.1 ppg) has helped take Memphis to the next level. The playmaker can score by driving to the basket and is capable of knocking down the jumper. Rose's ability to create opportunities for his teammates is his best attribute. He leads the Tigers with 4.5 assists per game and is an excellent rebounding guard with 4.3 per contest. Rose will likely declare for the NBA draft following the season.

Wing players Antonio Anderson and Chris Douglas-Roberts apply relentless pressure defensively. Douglas-Roberts leads the team in scoring with 17.3 points per game. He moves well without the ball and drains 45 percent of his three-point attempts. The versatile Anderson is good for 8.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. The athletic duo is a matchup nightmare for opposing defensive schemes.

Robert Dozier and Joey Dorsey do the bulk of the dirty work for the Tigers. Dozier scores a little more and Dorsey gets a few more rebounds but together they control the paint against most opponents. The big men combine for 16.4 points and rebounds per game.

Michigan State started 19-2, earned a national ranking of seven and appeared to be the class of the Big Ten. However, the Spartans struggled away from home in conference play and finished in a disappointing fourth place. The up-and-down Spartans returned to early season form in impressive victories last weekend.

The Spartans return all five starters from last year's team including senior leader Drew Neitzel and playmaker Raymar Morgan. Neitzel (14.1 ppg) is a streaky shooter with outstanding range. He has the ability to score a lot of points quickly and change the complexion of a contest. Neitzel has struggled with his shot at times which causes the MSU offense to be predictable and ineffective.

Morgan (14.2 ppg) is capable of knocking down the mid- to long-range jumper and slashing to the basket. The sophomore is second on the team with 6.1 rebounds per game.

The Spartans are tough to beat when they take care of the basketball. The point guard trio of Neitzel, Kalin Lucas and Travis Walton combined for 113 assists and just 43 turnovers during the last 10 games. The freshman Lucas is leading the Spartans in points and assists in the tournament.

Memphis has an advantage on the inside. Michigan State will rotate its big men to try to keep up with the Tigers. Goran Suton is the team's leading rebounder (8.2 rpg) and is the only legitimate scoring option among the Spartan big men.

Michigan State is fairly deep and will be able to use a lot of fouls. This may come into play against the pathetic free-throw shooting Tigers. Memphis shot 47 percent from the line against Mississippi State.

Memphis is a 5-point favorite and the 'total' is 134.

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