Michigan St. @ DePaul preview

Michigan State will likely be without star sophomore Miles Bridges when the fifth-ranked Spartans open play in the PK80 Invitational on Thursday in Portland against DePaul. The 6-foot-7 swingman hurt his left ankle during last Sunday’s win over Stony Brook and is listed as day-to-day, but the Spartans won’t take any chances with their leading scorer.

A preseason All-American, Bridges is averaging 19.7 points and seven rebounds while shooting 51.2 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from 3-point range. “He’s a big part of this team, a big part of what we’re trying to do,” Spartans guard Cassius Winston told reporters. “To have him not with us kind of hurts us a little bit. But it forces guys to step up. A lot of dudes are gonna have to play better, including myself, at filling that void for however long he’s out.” Guard Matt McQuaid could move into the starting lineup for the Spartans, who will also be without forwards Kyle Ahrens (foot) and Kenny Goins (knee sprain). Michigan State still figures to have enough scoring to get past DePaul, which has opened the season with a loss to Notre Dame, a win over Delaware State and a loss at Illinois.

TV: 11:30 p.m. ET, ESPN

ABOUT MICHIGAN STATE (2-1): Coach Tom Izzo was optimistic about Bridges’ prognosis on Monday after X-rays ruled out a high ankle sprain that would have kept him out for several weeks. If Bridges misses the entire tournament, the Spartans will rely even more on the trio of Nick Ward, Joshua Langford and freshman forward Jaren Jackson, Jr., who averages 10.7 points and a team-high 8.0 rebounds. The Spartans are shooting 55.3 percent from the field and receiving strong play at the point, where Winston is averaging 9.3 points and eight assists.

ABOUT DEPAUL (1-2): The Blue Demons rank last in the Big East in scoring (70.7 points per game), field-goal shooting (37.7 percent) and 3-point shooting (26.7 percent), which could be a problem against the loaded field in Portland. “When we come home at the end of the weekend, we'll be able to evaluate exactly where we are at, not just against Michigan State, but the other two opponents,” coach Dave Leitao told reporters. “Giving ourselves a major test early in the season, we'll know what the rest of the year is going to be about.” Junior guard Max Strus averages 13.7 points to lead the Blue Demons.

TIP-INS

1. DePaul leads the all-time series 7-4, but Michigan State has won the last two meetings.

2. Blue Demons freshman G Justin Roberts scored a career-high 19 points in last Friday’s 82-73 loss at Illinois.

3. Michigan State has an all-time record of 127-36 in the month of November.

PREDICTION: Michigan State 89, DePaul 62