Jaden Akins is Michigan State's key to a deep March Madness run

With Michigan State earning its 26th consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament, the Spartans' will need someone other than fifth-year seniors Tyson Walker and Malik Hall to step up against their first round opponent, Mississippi State.

That someone is Jaden Akins.

Akins' season has been a disappointing one, to say the least, based on what Spartan fans expected from the junior at the beginning of the season. However, his struggles this year can all be forgiven if Akins can consistently make the open shots and play consistent defense throughout the remainder of March Madness.

Coming into this season, Akins was expected to take a big jump after having a great sophomore campaign a year prior. However, it has been the exact opposite, with the junior taking a step backwards. Akins has had a tough time getting the ball in the basket, as he's only shooting 41% from the field and 36% from beyond the arc, compared to his 42% on 3-pointers last season.

Akins has shown flashes of the player we expected to see, like when he put up 20 points against Penn State and 23 in the first meeting with Michigan. However, since the win over the Nittany Lions on Feb. 14, Akins has only scored in double figures twice over the past eight games, while shooting 28% from the field and 21% from three point range.

It has been a tough stretch for Akins, but head coach Tom Izzo still has faith in his junior wing, noting Akins lives in the gym and is constantly working on his game. He also know how much the junior cares, which was evident after Michigan State fell to Purdue, 67-62, in the Big Ten Tournament. In the defeat, Akins was limited to four points and went 2-of-11 from the field.

"Jaden doesn't show a lot of emotion," Izzo said. "After the Purdue game, I've never seen him so emotional — and I said, 'What's the matter?', and he gave one of the great comments that you hope all players will give. He said, 'I'm letting the team down.' That's pretty cool that a guy that's a junior and has already done some things would feel that way. I said, 'You just keep doing what you're doing.'"

This has been a consistent message from head coach to struggling player. Izzo shared similar comments after Michigan State's loss at Indiana, once again noting Akins' work ethic despite a lack of in-game results.

"Jaden has been here at eight o'clock in the morning shooting shots like he is the best player who ever played here, and he had good shots in that game” Izzo said.

The hope is that, sooner or later, Akins' shots will start to fall. He's too talented of a shooter to keep missing open looks at this rate. Yet, if the Spartans want to make a run at making it back to the Final Four, or their first national championship appearance since 2009, they'll need Akins to start making shots starting on Thursday against the Bulldogs.

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