EAST LANSING — Once the college basketball calendar flips from the grind of the long winter to the frenzy of March Madness, something happens.

Guards typically hold the key to success and a long stay in the NCAA tournament.

Take Michigan State basketball last season.

Jaden Akins started bombing away from outside. A.J. Hoggard started knifing his way through defenders to the basket for layups. Tyson Walker did a little of everything. And the Spartans played their way into their first Sweet 16 since 2019.

Until they ran into an even hotter guard in Kansas State’s Markquis Nowell, who ended their season.

SHAWN WINDSOR: Tom Izzo never felt so much relief in his basketball life. Will MSU take advantage?

All three of Tom Izzo’s guards came back for a chance to pursue an even more special season. Although the regular season did not play out as planned, the veteran backcourt trio will begin anew Thursday in the NCAAs. The No. 9-seeded Spartans face No. 8 seed Mississippi State in a West region first-round game, tipping off at 12:15 p.m. (CBS) at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

“I think with our three guards in Tyson, Jaden and A.J., we still got a chance to be really good in those positions,” Izzo said Monday. “And those positions are usually what helps you win in tournament play.”

To do so, the Spartans (19-14) must fix the poor shooting from that Big Three that has crept in over the past few weeks, though the trio has been hot and cold all season.

After opening the first two games 2-for-31 from 3-point range, Izzo's team started to drain deep shots consistently. Over its next 23 games, Michigan State shot 39.5% from behind the arc.

But starting with a 2-for-14 showing in a road win at Michigan on Feb. 17, the Spartans reverted to their early form. Even with a 10-for-20 performance from outside in a loss to Iowa, Michigan State has made just 31.9% from 3-point range (while shooting just 41.3% overall) in the past eight games. (The Spartans made 47.6% of their shots over the first 25 games.)

“I wish we could've played a couple of more games in the Big Ten tournament to kind of really figure it all out before we got into (the NCAAs), but things didn't go that way,” Hoggard said. “So we're just here everyday getting better, continually doing to things that we know we need to fix.”

A sudden fix might be tough to find, particularly against Mississippi State (21-13). The Bulldogs rank seventh in the nation in 3-point defense, at 29.4% allowed. They also are 52nd in field-goal percentage defense (41.6%).

“We're still watching film, getting a better understanding of them,” Walker said. “It's just a completely different game from Big Ten to them. So we just got to be prepared. They're physical and big.”

Over the last 11 games, coach Chris Jans' team has limited its Southeastern Conference opponents to just 21.9% on 3s. However, the Bulldogs also have made just 19.8% of their own 3s while shooting 64.9% at the free throw line and committing 12.1 turnovers per game in that stretch.

“Defense, that's what we live on,” Mississippi State forward forward Tolu Smith III told reporters Sunday. “That's what we (hang) our hat on. … Every time we have a good game, it's because of defense. I think any team would have a hard time dealing with us.”

The Spartans are shooting 35.9% beyond the arc while limiting opponents to 32.8% there. Walker averages 18.2 points per game while making 37.3% of his 3s. Akins is scoring 10.2 points while hitting 36% on 3s, but the junior is making just 30.5% there in the 12 games since going 7-for-10 from deep against U-M on Jan. 30. Hoggard is shooting 33.8% behind the arc for the season while averaging 11 points a game, but his accuracy has increased — making 40.9% (9-for-22) since Jan. 26 — as he shoots less often from there.

Walker’s scoring numbers have dropped steadily, however, with the 6-1, 185-pound fifth-year senior averaging just 16.1 points and shooting 39.4% in the past 15 games.

“What I hope is, I've seen Jaden for his career as a 40% 3-point shooter,” Izzo said. “So when guys have done it before, I know what A.J. has done at times, I know what Tyson has done.”

Walker’s defense likely will be tested against Mississippi State freshman Josh Hubbard, who is averaging 17.1 points per game while shooting 35.8% on 3s. The 5-10, 180-pound freshman has taken that to a different level over the past 10 games, scoring 22.7 a contest.

The Bulldogs also are a strong rebounding team, particularly on the offensive glass, where they rank 39th nationally at 12.44 per game. Their plus-5.9 rebounding margin overall is 28th in the country. Izzo pointed to the job senior Mady Sissoko did in rebounding “like a madman” against Zach Edey in Friday’s Big Ten tournament loss to No. 3 Purdue as a blueprint the Spartans can use in the NCAAs, particularly in Thursday’s matchup.

“We'll need that,” Izzo said. “Mississippi State is one of the bigger teams that we'll have played. … They're as big and as strong as anybody we've played. I guess it's good to come off a game where you played Purdue, which is a very physical team. But this team might be more mobile, especially at the center position.”

Yet as he has alluded to for weeks, while deflecting attention away from his big men, Izzo is still confident in his guards paving the way to a deep run in the NCAAs.

“I think we have potential to have great guard play,” he said. “I understand though that everybody looks at it. I mean, I look at it that way some nights looking at the ceiling, that we haven't done it on a consistent basis. Consistency now depends on two games. You gotta win the weekend, win two games, and then you can be inconsistent for four days, then you gotta get consistent again.

“And I know that's a trite way to look at it. But I really believe — and I've said it the whole year — we're better than we're playing sometimes. Sometimes we were playing very well. ... And that's why I still believe we can. Now, if we don't play at that level? We'll be coming home Thursday night.”

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.

Subscribe to the "Spartan Speak" podcast for new episodes weekly on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State basketball putting faith in guards vs Mississippi State