Final Four 2012 Predictions: Why Michigan State Is a Lock for New Orleans

Michigan State looks like a lock to make it to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament.

Tom Izzo has coached toughness into this talented Michigan State team. The group has a mix of strong defense, sharpshooting and leadership. That last part is particularly essential as we've seen forward Draymond Green step into the role of on-court coach this season.

On Selection Sunday, Michigan State's section of the bracket looked like the weakest overall. Now that their top potential opponent, No. 2 Missouri, fell in an epic first-round upset to Norfolk State, the Spartans clearly look like the best team left in their bracket.

The remaining teams left trying to stop them are No. 4 Louisville, MSU's sweet sixteen opponent, No. 3 Marquette, and No. 7 seed Florida. However, none of these teams look capable of taking down the Spartans.  

Louisville is a solid team with the best pure defense in college basketball. Only three opponents have scored more than 65 points all season. No one has done that so far in the tournament. But they don't match up well against the Spartans because Michigan State has the defense and rebounding to match the Cardinals in the post. Louisville's offense is anemic, so the chances that they hold Michigan State below 70 points while also scoring that many against the Spartan's defense are very slim.

Marquette is another talented team, but one that will simply be out of its element against Michigan State. The Golden Eagles are a senior-laden team led by future NBA guard Jae Crowder. But they don't have the scoring versatility to get past the Spartan's tough defense, particularly in the post.  And, on the opposite side, their own defense has little chance of stopping the Spartans' offense.

For their part, never count out coach Billy Donovan's Florida teams. Donovan always seems to get his teams ready to play above their talent in the tournament. But make no mistake, this Florida squad is not the Al Horford and Joakim Noah team that won back-to-back national championships. They are a No. 7 seed with middling talent. Defeating the Spartans would be a very tall order.

The Spartans also have recent history on their side. Tom Izzo's best teams are almost always tough enough to advance far into the tournament. Two of his last four teams made the Final Four. The only one that did not was last year's under-performing group. Before that, Izzo's teams also made the Final Four in 2005, 2001, and 1999, and winning the national championship in 2000.

So, if you are betting against a team making the Final Four, make sure its not the Spartans.  Michigan State is a lock to get to New Orleans.