Sports: Another Eventful Year for MSU Hoops
In 2010-11, the men’s basketball team rebounded after a mid-season slump and made the NCAA tournament for the 14 straight time, while the women’s team enjoyed a breakout season under Suzy Merchant for MSU’s first outright Big Ten championship.
The word “comeback” has not been used much in the era of Tom Izzo, whose men’s basketball program has maintained an elevated national standing since 1998. But “comeback” emerged as a theme in 2010-11. The Spartans had to crawl out of a mid-season hole to make the NCAA tournament for the 14th time in a row. It was a daunting task, as they had to overcome six major injuries, two player departures and assorted physical ailments. They had to recover from losing five out of six games—a stretch that included a 20-point loss to the league’s last-place team.
This season tested Izzo’s and the team’s mettle. The Spartans started out No. 2 nationally, a ranking Izzo thought was too high but welcomed as a positive statement about the program. MSU played a schedule Sagarin ranked second toughest in the nation--including Top Ten powerhouses Duke, Syracuse and Texas away, and UConn and Washington in the Maui Invitational. MSU did manage a 76-71 win against Washington and also beat ranked teams like Wisconsin and Purdue. Something seemed amiss, however, even when the team won. The traditional hallmarks of Izzo’s program—dominant rebounding, defense and hustle—were not always evident.
Early on, the Spartans were also plagued by turnovers and poor free throw shooting. In a win over South Carolina, for example, MSU—which led the nation in rebounding margin the past two years—was out-rebounded 44-41. In an 84-79 loss at Duke, MSU had 20 turnovers and missed nearly 50 percent of its free throws. The Spartans barely squeaked by Oakland 77-76, while tying the smaller Grizzlies with 24 defensive caroms. Midway through the conference season MSU sustained losses at Illinois, Purdue, Wisconsin and last-place Iowa, and a home loss against archrival Michigan. MSU was allowing opponents .543 shooting during this stretch, while Junior Guard Korie Lucious was suspended for the season. Lucious and Chris Allen, who left in the preseason, were among the team’s best shooters. MSU’s only win during that stretch as a one-point home overtime win against 10th-place Indiana.
After that stretch, MSU fought hard to crawl back into contention—going 4-3 in the remaining games while shoring up its defense and limiting opponents shooting to around .400. Everything came together in a 76-56 rout of No. 10 Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament. Senior Guard and Team MVP Kalin Lucas began to regain his quickness after undergoing surgery for a ruptured Achilles tendon last year. He led MSU in scoring in most games, averaging over 20 points in his last 10 regular-season games. He surged as MSU’s all-time leader in made free throws, with 489. Junior Draymond Green performed with great versatility, earning a rare triple double in a home win against Penn State—only the third Spartan to achieve this feat (the others were Earving “Magic” Johnson and Charlie Bell). “Day Day” led the team in rebounding, steals, assists and 3-point field-goal percentage, and ranked second in blocks and scoring. Junior center Delvon Roe played with great flashes of athleticism and emerged as a defensive stopper despite surgically-repaired and bruised knees—holding some of the Big Ten’s leading scorers to well below their averages. He already ranks second all-time in career blocks. Freshman shooting guard Keith Appling, last year’s Mr. Basketball in Michigan and a prolific scorer in high school, emerged as a lockdown perimeter defender. As the season unfolded, senior guard Durrell Summers—who starred during MSU’s last two runs to the Final Four and was MVP of the 2010 NCAA Midwest Regional—worked hard to regain his shooting touch. On the front line, sophomores Derrick Nix and Garrett Sherman and freshman Adreian Payne all seemed to improve. Walk-ons Academic All-Big Ten Honoree Mike Kebler and Austin Thornton provided defensive help.
MSU showed true grit in close contests, winning eight of 12 games decided by five or less points. Many of the wins saw late comebacks. At home against Wisconsin, MSU trailed by nine points with 2:37 left, but won 64-61. MSU eked out similar wins against Northwestern and Indiana at home, and at Minnesota. The Spartans also carved out wins against Illinois and Washington in the final three minutes. The senior class of Lucas, Summers and Kebler left major footprints—two Big Ten regular-season titles and back-to-back Final Four appearances. Mark Montgomery, Dwayne Stephens and Mike Garland remained as assistant coaches. At season’s end, MSU staged a comeback and made its 14th straight NCAA tournament—the third longest current streak in the nation.
SPECIAL CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON INCLUDES FIRST-EVER SELLOUT
For the first time in history, MSU women’s basketball won an outright Big Ten basketball championship. The Spartans had previously won shared titles.
In her fourth season as MSU women’s basketball head coach, Suzy Merchant has achieved some historical “firsts.” She earned MSU’s first outright Big Ten championship, going 25-4 overall and 13-3 in conference play. MSU previously shared Big Ten titles in 1997 and 2005. She was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year, her first such honor. On Feb. 13, she oversaw the first-ever sellout for women’s basketball at the Breslin Center, where 14,797 fans saw the Spartans beat archrival Michigan 69-56. Merchant called the attendance milestone “overwhelming.” It marked MSU’s ninth straight win over the Wolverines and it reinforced MSU’s standing in the national top 15 in attendance.
The win propelled MSU to No. 8 in the USA Today Coaches Poll, one notch ahead of No. 9 Duke. MSU dominated the league in most important statistical categories, ranking No. 1 in scoring defense, scoring margin, rebound margin, steals and offensive rebounds. It was MSU’s eighth straight 20-win season, and it gave the Spartans its first top seed at the Big Ten Tournament.
This year’s championship—along with a Top Ten national ranking—was largely made possible by the senior class of guard Brittney Thomas, forwards Kalisha Keane and Cetera Washington, and walk-on Jasmine Holmes. Junior center Lykendra Johnson—the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year—also entered MSU with this group but she red-shirted one season because of an injury. “I like their leadership, certainly their talent, and their character,” says Merchant of the seniors. “And, they’re fun. It’s neat to hear stories about how inspirational this group has been to others on the team. They are a hard-working group. They have a passion for the game and they love to play together.”
Keane averaged 16.2 points and five rebounds a game and was named the Big Ten Player of the Year. A clutch player, she is nicknamed “Big Shot Kal” by teammates. Keane often hit shots when the 35-second clock ticked down. Most notably, Keane hit a buzzer-beater trey that beat Iowa with 0.5 seconds left and another trey to force overtime at Wisconsin with 12.9 seconds left. She is the only active Big Ten player to have surpassed 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists and 200 steals.
Thomas ran the team while averaging 9.1 points and 2.9 rebounds. She has 385 assists in her career, which ranks in MSU’s top five ever. Fellow senior Washington excelled on defense, nabbing 6 rebounds a game. Johnson was dominant in the paint, averaging a double-double (13.5 points, 10.6 rebounds) in Big Ten play. She averaged 4.6 offensive rebounds and 2.6 steals, tops in the league. In addition, Johnson had a team-best 38 blocks for the season and was opportunistic in putback shots.