The defending National Champion Kansas Jayhawks and the Michigan State Spartans will meet up tonight for a rematch of a January 10th battle that took place in East Lansing, MI. The Spartans won that matchup 75-62, but they will face a more mature Jayhawks squad tonight when things tip off at 9:37pm ET at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. 
Kansas vs Michigan State Sweet 16 NCAA Tournament Picks at Sportsbook.com have the Spartans listed as a -1 against the spread favorite.
The Jayhawks have again advanced to the Sweet 16, this time as a number three seed in the Midwest Region. Kansas defeated a surprising North Dakota State team 84-74 in the opening round before going on to overcome Dayton 60-43 in the second round. The two tournament victories gave Kansas eight wins in their last 10 games. Bill Self's squad is now 27-7 overall and 3-2 in neutral site action.
The Jayhawks did not have an overwhelming performance against the Flyers, but they did limit Dayton to 22.2 percent field goal shooting as well as 21.1 percent from downtown. The difference for Kansas was center Cole Aldrich and guard Sherron Collins. Aldrich turned in an amazing performance, recording a triple-double with 13 points, 20 rebounds, and 10 blocked shots. Collins scored a game high 25 points and grabbed seven boards.
Michigan State reached familiar Sweet 16 territory after pounding Robert Morris 77-62 in the first round of action and then skating by a tough USC team 74-69. The Big Ten champions improved their record to 28-6 with the two wins and they have now prevailed in eight of their last nine contests. The Spartans, who are 7-3 in neutral site games, are averaging 72.1 points per game while giving up 63.1 to their competition.
Tom Izzo's squad needed a total team effort to get past the Trojans and they got one as four players scored in double figures. They outrebounded USC 33 to 24 and, as a team, they dished out 20 assists. Guards Kalin Lucas and Travis Walton were the biggest difference makers for the Spartans. Walton scored a team high 18 points while Lucas dropped in 10 and handed out seven assists.
Sportsbook.com's Kansas vs Michigan State Sweet 16 NCAA Tournament Picks:
Kansas Jayhawks +1 (-105), Over 138.5 (-110)
Michigan State Spartans -1 (-105), Under 138.5 (-110)
