LSU’s Tremont Waters in the spotlight in battle of top point guards
Will go head-to-head with MSU’s Cassius Winston
WASHINGTON D.C. (WVUE) - As Michigan State’s Tom Izzo put it, when you tune into the Super Bowl, you want to see two great quarterbacks. And in that sense, basketball fans are in for a treat with two great point guards squaring off on Friday night.
Spartans point guard Cassius Winston and LSU’s Tremont Waters are two of the best in the game. All of the players know it, and the coaches know it as well.
“He’s very competitive,” says LSU interim head coach Tony Benford. “Tremont is a gamer.”
“I would say I take every game personal,” says Waters.
“I play within myself,” says Winston. “I know what I’m good at. I know my spots, and I don’t try to play outside my strengths.”
Their play styles are somewhat similar. Both Winston and Waters pace their teams and are able to create for others and themselves in transition.
“Cass can score it,” says Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo. “He can pass it. Waters can score it. He can pass it. Waters is a little more disruptive on defense. I think Cass’s ability to shoot the ball from the outside with consistency is a little bit better. So it should be a heck of a match-up.”
But what truly separates Waters and Winston from a lot of players is their team-first attitudes. They recognize that it won’t be solely on their shoulders to carry their teams to victory.
Finding that balance between attacking and facilitating is what can change the game more than anything.
“I don’t necessarily get into match-ups and everything that goes into that,” says Waters. “That’s for everyone else to pretty much evaluate. I go in knowing that I have o run my team. It’s about myself and my teammates and the coaching staff.”
“We both do a lot for our teams,” says Winston. “And if we’re playing our best, then usually our team is playing their best, too. So the victory in itself is just winning the game.”
And truth be told, with guards that good, it takes more than just one player to slow them down. Michigan State and LSU say they plan on sending multiple defenders at the opposing point guard, hoping to keep them from taking over the game.
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