Tom Izzo’s Past
Tom Izzo is the one of the most respected coaches in all of basketball for good reason. He started coaching at Michigan State in 1995 and has stayed there for the past 30 years. He remains the coach at Michigan State and in his time with the program he has accumulated a 717-297 record. Izzo has led the program to 1 national championship and 7 final four appearances. He also holds the record for most consecutive times making the NCAA tournament which is 26 times and counting. Tom Izzo has cemented himself as one of the greatest basketball coaches of all time at any level.
The Izzo Factor: Can He Repeat the Magic This Year?
The Spartans are coming off losing to the #1 seeded North Carolina Tar Heels last March but are looking to turn it around this year. Izzo lost a lot of guys including star point guard Tyson Walker (graduated) and other key pieces including AJ Hoggard (Vanderbilt) and Mady Sissoko (Cal). Fortunately, that was the extent of their losses and were able to keep most of their squad. The most known returners include stud Senior guard Jaden Akins and the forceful backcourt trio of Jaxon Kohler, Carson Cooper and Xavier Booker. These four all played significant minutes in games last year for the Spartans and continue to lead the squad this year. Some other young returners that have showed out to start this year is Freshman guard Jeremy Fears Jr., junior guard Tre Holloman and Sophomore forward Coen Carr. None of these guys got real minutes last year but this year Izzo gave them the nod and they have shown out for the veteran coach.
The Next Generation of Spartans: Are They Ready to Dominate?
The Spartans have been off to a great start including big time wins against ranked UNC and huge conference wins against Minnesota and Nebraska. They have started off the year 10-2 with losses coming to top ranked Kansas and a tough Memphis Tigers squad. Michigan State have had an ideal start to the season but they won’t be able to run against some fierce competition in the Big 10. Their toughest opponents coming up are all ranked and coming for blood. #24 Illinois, #21 Purdue, #22 UCLA, and #9 Oregon have all proved they can compete but how will Izzo and the Spartans respond against some of these powerhouses. The reason to why the Spartans have been good this year is because everyone is unselfish and just want to win rather than caring about statistics. This can also explain Izzo’s success throughout decades of coaching against top level guys. If Michigan State continues to work as hard as they can night in and night out and continue to play basketball the right way, they will be one of the tougher teams to defeat.
