ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Michigan State basketball reached the No. 1 ranking and built national-title expectations last season, led by guard Denzel Valentine.
Losing the national player of the year will hurt, but replacing almost the entire frontcourt may be a larger adjustment.
Once freshman forward Deyonta Davis announced he was leaving early for the NBA, the Spartans’ frontcourt was decimated.
Senior Matt Costello was the Spartans’ third leading scorer and leading rebounder (10.7 points, 8.2 rebounds per game). Davis was the fifth-leading scorer at 7.5 points and third-leading rebounder at 5.5 per game. Marvin Clark, with 3.