Virginia Tech @ Michigan St. preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 22, 2013 ) Virginia Tech 77, Michigan St 96

No. 3 Michigan State looks for a fourth straight victory when it takes on Virginia Tech in the first round of the Maui Invitational in Hawaii on Monday. The Spartans are coming off a 94-46 rout of Charleston Southern a week ago, while the Hokies have won five straight, topping Delaware State 100-64 on Wednesday.

Michigan State has one of the best players in the country in senior point guard Cassius Winston, who is averaging 17.5 points and 7 assists per game. Xavier Tillman is a force in the paint on both ends of the floor, averaging 12 points and 9.5 rebounds, though the Spartans are such a good passing team, any player on the floor is a threat to score. Freshman swingman Landers Nolley II paces the Hokies with 20.2 points a game, while guard Nahiem Alleyne is scoring 12.6 points per contest. At 6-1, Tyrece Radford is Virginia Tech's top rebounder with 7 per game, but the Hokies will need a team effort on the glass against the Spartans, who outboard their opponents by an average of 11 per game.

TV: 4 p.m. ET, ESPN.

ABOUT MICHIGAN STATE (3-1): Tom Izzo's squad led the Big Ten in 3-point shooting percentage last season, hitting 37.8 percent from beyond the arc, but it's been a different story thus far this season. Michigan State has connected on 29.5 percent of its attempts from 3-point range through four games, with freshman guard Rocket Watts hitting just 3-of-17 and sophomore forward Gabe Brown 3-of-10. Part of it may be the longer distance of the 3-point arc this season, but some of it might just be getting into the groove of the season, but the Spartans are going to need to hit those to stop opposing defenses to packing it in the paint to stop drives to the hoop.

ABOUT VIRGINIA TECH (5-0): Youth is definitely being served in coach Mike Young's first season with the Hokies, with four of the team's top five scorers being freshmen. Nolley and Alleyne top the scoring list, while Jalen Cone (8.8 points) and Radford (7.4) rank fourth and fifth, respectively, on the team. Tech has cruised through its first five games, with only the season opener at Clemson finishing within 10 points, but Young certainly set up the early part of the season to give his team some confidence, with teams from the Big South, Patriot League and MEAC (twice) visiting Blacksburg already.

TIP-INS

1. The Hokies haven't played in the Maui Invitational since 1985, while this is the Spartans' fifth appearance in the tournament, including winning the title in 1991.

2. Virginia Tech connected on a school- and ACC-record 21 3-pointers in its win over Delaware State, including five by Alleyne.

3. The winner of this game will take on either Dayton or Georgia in the semifinals on Tuesday, while the loser will take on the team that loses that game.

PREDICTION: Michigan State 83, Virginia Tech 70