Sports: Hoops

The men’s basketball team captured national attention with its storybook march to Ford Field while the women’s team pulled off an iconic win over Duke.

            “Spartans, what is your profession?”  “Hoops. Hoops. Hoops.”  The Izzone might consider this chant variation after MSU’s basketball postseason in 2009.

            The men’s team overcame long odds, naysaying pundits and two top seeds to advance to the NCAA finals in Ford Field, Detroit, etching a storybook saga that captivated the state and nation. Tom Izzo’s program took a giant stride towards “elitedom.”  In Michigan, one could sense a tectonic plate shift toward the Green and White.

            In the title game, North Carolina beat MSU 89-72, a win coach Roy Williams called “fitting.” Had MSU won, adjectives like “inspiring,” “uplifting” and “magical” would have surfaced.  MSU’s run from Minneapolis to Indianapolis to Detroit had taken on overtones of destiny, with the Final Four so close to home. The Spartans emerged like heroes in a Disney tale, courageous youths offering hope and “a ray of light” to an area blighted by the economy.  Millions found inspiration with their work ethic. Like their no-nonsense, blue-collar coach, they showed that hard-nosed, unselfish play could trump talent, hype and braggadocio. Such uplifting themes swirled in cavernous Ford Field.

            Here are some capsules of MSU’s run:

            ? Tom Izzo, with five Final Fours in 11 years, now stands among the most elite coaches in the nation.  Hall of Fame?  Cinched. Only question now is, can Izzo ascend onto college basketball’s all-time Mount Rushmore?  (Don’t bet against him.)

            ? Amazingly, in his 15 seasons, Izzo has taken every four-year player he ever recruited to the Big Dance. No other coach can make this claim.

            ? The Spartans defended the honor of the Big Ten, a conference pundits had  pooh-poohed as a sluggish.  That stereotype was smashed when MSU outran two No. 1-seed Big East powerhouses back-to-back. The Big Ten champions ran up 82 points against Connecticut and outscored the Huskers 22-10 on fast break points.  Louisville, which dropped 103 points on Arizona, mustered only 52 points against the Spartans.

            ? The MSU brand name has strengthened in unfathomable ways, notably in Southeast Michigan.  You could see magical twinkles in the eyes of young kids now eager and proud to wear green and white.

            ? MSU’s success accounted for two Final Four attendance records—72,456 in the semis, and 72,922 in the finals—and an incredibly successful weekend, with tens of thousands showing up at related events. 

            ? MSU’s presence in the Final Four helped generate between $30 to $50 million in economic impact for Detroit, according to NCAA estimates. As athletics director Mark Hollis wrote in the MSU Alumni Magazine (p. 26, Winter 2009), MSU athletics “benefits not just the local economies, but also the entire state.”

            ? The estimated 30,000 Spartans who turned out to see MSU’s shoot-around at Ford Field impressed even CBS announcer Jim Nantz.  And the 6,000-plus overflowing the Somerset Mall in Troy for the MSU Alumni Association’s pep rally moved Izzo to the verge of tears.

            ? MSU presence helped underscore the NCAA’s celebration of the 30th anniversary of the 1979 championship game pitting Magic Johnson against Larry Bird. Still the most watched game in television history, that game has been credited with launching “March Madness” (see pp. 40-41, Spring 2009). MSU beat Indiana State 75-64 to secure its first NCAA championship in 1979.  With Magic and Bird presenting the ball in this year’s final game, it was fitting that MSU was again in the finals.

            ? MSU provided college basketball with a showcase program where major success is achieved within the rules.  Like Jud Heathcote’s program, where Izzo apprenticed, Izzo’s program does not have the slightest whiff of impropriety.  In 15 seasons, more than 83 percent of Izzo’s players who completed their eligibility earned their degrees—outstanding by comparison to the norm in men’s basketball.

            Starting the season, Izzo wrote “Ford Field” on a chalk board.  Going to the Final Four, especially one 90 miles down the road, was clearly a team goal. But to get there the Spartans had to overcome many potholes, ranging from injuries to illnesses. Still, the Spartans won the conference by four games. Once NCAA competition began, MSU faced the headwinds of expert opinion; most talking heads picked against MSU at every stage.

            When MSU faced 15-seed Robert Morris in Minneapolis, some bracketologists picked the Colonials to win (perhaps remembering that George Mason beat MSU in 2006).  MSU won handily, 77-62.  Almost immediately, some analysts picked streaking Southern Cal—as talented a No. 10-seed as Izzo had ever seen—in the second round.  In a game that saw 16 ties and 14 lead changes, MSU took advantage of a late Trojan turnover to prevail 74-69. Senior Goran Suton held USC center Taj Gibson to three points, while senior Travis Walton, who averages about 5 points a game, exploded for 18 points.

            At the regionals in Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, MSU faced Kansas first. MSU had beaten the defending national champions 75-62 at Kansas in December. Some analysts, citing the Jayhawks’ improvement and the “revenge factor,” picked against MSU. For a while, with Kansas out-rebounding the Spartans, an upset looked imminent. But the Spartans chipped at the lead and tied the game 60-60 with 1:46 to play.  Then came a spectacular three-pointer by “Cool Hand Lucas” in the lane with 48 seconds left. The sophomore point guard showed why he was the Big Ten Player of the Year.  He spun into the paint, pump-faked to get his defender airborne, and stepped forward for a floater while being fouled by the descending defender. He made the free throw to put MSU ahead 63-60. In the end, MSU prevailed 67-62.

            “I'm proud of the way our guys fought back when we could have died a few times,” said Izzo afterwards. “I think we were very well prepared for this tournament and the toughness it takes.”

            Almost immediately a media consensus emerged that MSU, a stereotype plodder from the Big Ten, could not possibly keep up with the swift Ferrari that was Louisville—the Big East champions and the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament.  (Even President Obama, who said good things about MSU, picked Louisville to win.) The Cardinals had scored 103 points against Arizona and looked like a bunch of stampeding slam-dunkers.

            Leave it to Izzo to figure out how to win over the insurmountable—especially in the second game of a weekend series. In the regional final against Louisville, Izzo exploited a soft spot in the center of Rick Pitino’s zone defense with versatile Suton, who played like a point-center, scoring and distributing besides rebounding. The senior led all scorers with 19 points and 10 rebounds and was named MVP of the regional. MSU dictated the tempo, limited the explosive Louisville offense to 52 points, and avoided turnovers to Pitino’s vaunted pressure defense, thus quieting the 30,000 fans from nearby Louisville who packed Lucas Oil Stadium.

            "They were the better team," said Cardinal star Terrence Williams to further squash the Big Ten stereotype. "They were quicker than us. Their defense was more physical, and we couldn't turn them over like we wanted to."  

            Izzo called the win “as big as our school ever had because we’re going to Detroit.”

            In the Final Four, the Spartan bandwagon attracted a far wider circle of fans than normal. Cheering on the Spartans were fans of all persuasions, including the basketball coach and former football coach from the rival Wolverines.  As Magic Johnson notes, “Michigan needs something to feel good about, and right now, the whole state is feeling good about this Michigan State team." Columnist Pat Forde of ESPN.com developed a “Likability Index” for the Final Four teams and MSU emerged as the “most likable,” followed by Villanova in second place.

            Despite the feel-good nature of the Spartan advance, stereotypes die hard.  Once again, media pundits remained skeptical and picked Connecticut to win the semifinal game.  The Huskers featured a 7-foot-3 center who swatted balls the way King Kong took care of airplanes circling the Empire State Building.  They were also said to be the Big East’s most physical and athletic team.

            With some 50,000 partisans setting decibel records, the Spartans took the fight to UConn.  In a total deconstruction of its “slow-down” stereotype, MSU ran right at the towering Huskers and outscored them 22-10 in fast-break points. Raymar Morgan, who had bouts with illnesses during the season, erupted for 18 points, 9 caroms and 5 steals. MSU matched them dunk for dunk, push for shove. Indeed, the most spectacular video highlight—and an instant YouTube classic—was sophomore Durrell Summers’ dunk on Stanley Robinson.  The “in your face” dunk served as an articulate rebuttal to the talking heads. MSU reserves outscored their counterparts 33-7.

            “Amazing,” said Magic Johnson afterward.  “(Tom Izzo is the) Best Coach in America. You couldn’t have dreamt this up.”

            Izzo may also be the classiest coach around.  He remained humble at the press conference and said, “Thank you, Detroit.  Thank you, Michigan State.  See you Monday night.”

            This set up a final game rematch against North Carolina, a team replete with upperclass experience combined with NBA-level talent. In a December game in the same venue, the Tar Heels had crushed MSU by 35 points. This time around, MSU fought harder but still lost by 17 points.  Most fans stayed on after the game to honor the valiant effort MSU put up, making the 2009 NCAA tournament one of MSU’s greatest runs in history.  Afterwards, a green billboard went up on Jefferson Avenue in downtown Detroit.  It simply said “Thank you, Spartans.”

            For those who like early peeks into the crystal ball, MSU’s run was fueled partly by three freshmen and three sophomores—youngsters likely to get better as they mature and gain familiarity with the Izzo system.  One writer for Sports Illustrated picks MSU as next year’s preseason favorite to win it all.

            See you in Indianapolis in 2010.

A SIGNATURE WIN FOR MSU TAKES WOMEN TO SWEET 16

            Enroute to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, MSU’s women basketball team pulled off the sweetest of upsets.

            Suzy Merchant’s team was a No. 9 seed playing at the Breslin Center, and after dispatching Middle Tennessee State and offensive phenom Aisha Clark, faced top-seeded Duke—a team featuring 12 high school All-Americans and coach Joanne P. McCallie, Merchant’s predecessor at MSU. No ninth-seed had beaten a No. 1 seed in the past 11 years, so MSU faced a daunting task despite its home court advantage.  Moreover, MSU’s weakness was turnovers, while the quick, athletic Blue Devils forced 13.4 steals per game this season—second best in the country—and 19.3 turnovers.

            From the opening “boos” that followed McCallie’s introduction, it was clear that the Blue Devils were in for a fight.  The Spartans ramped up their defense and kept the game nip and tuck. In the final four minutes, however, senior guard Mia Johnson and backup center Lauren Aitch—both recruited to MSU by McCallie—keyed a 16-2 offensive eruption, shocking Duke 63-49.  Duke could not muster a field goal in the final 7:37, while the Spartans limited their turnovers to 14—“borderline a miracle,” in Merchant’s words.

            As the fans stormed the court in celebration, one could feel a sense of cosmic justice taking hold and exorcizing an unpleasant past. The Spartans moved on to the Sweet Sixteen in Berkeley, CA, but were edged 69-68 by No. 4 seed Iowa State.