East Lansing — As Cassius Winston examined his MVP trophy at the PK80 Invitational on Sunday evening, it was easy to point to his offensive production as the reason the Michigan State sophomore was holding the glorified block of wood.
He’d scored a career-high 28 points in a semifinal win over UConn and followed that with seven points, seven assists and five rebounds in the championship victory over North Carolina.
But Winston was clear last weekend about what he’s improved on the most since his freshman season — defense.
“If I don’t play defense, I can’t be on the floor,” Winston said after the win over UConn.