Mar 27, 2015 10:00 PM EDT By Russell Westerholm, UniversityHerald Reporter

Heading into their fourth straight Sweet 16, the Michigan State Spartans (7) meet the Oklahoma Sooners (3), a team not unfamiliar with the NCAA Tournament, yet a team not accustomed to getting this far.

Despite coming into the Big Dance with a worse record and a lower seeding, Michigan State is generally favored to beat Oklahoma Friday night. The Spartans are coming in confidently behind their coach Tom Izzo, who asserted himself as a true "tournament coach" after upsetting Virginia.

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Both teams have a similar approach on both ends of the court though they have differing track records in the Big Dance. In 28 tournament appearances, Michigan State has made eight Final Fours and won the championship twice. In the same amount of appearances, Oklahoma has only made four Final Fours, never winning a title.

Unlike Izzo, who has been at the Spartans' helm since 1995, Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger has bounced around between six schools in his 27-year career, the Associated Press noted.

"I think Lon Kruger has proven that no matter where he goes, he can make tweaks in what he does, but his system works," Izzo said in a pregame press conference.

The Spartans have had to deal without numerous key players on offense, leading many to peg this season as lost for Izzo's squad. That was until they beat Virginia.

"They're more similar than they are different," Kruger said in his pregame remarks. "If you asked that about Tom's club 15 years ago, I probably would have said the same things."

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