In the Iz-zone
When star point guard Kalin Lucas suffered an apparent ruptured Achilles tendon in his left foot with 2:28 remaining in the first half of Michigan State’s second round match-up with Maryland, many assumed the Spartans’ NCAA Tournament chances went down with the 2009 Big Ten Player of the Year.
But, as usual, coach Tom Izzo’s team was prepared. The next man up was Korie Lucious, who as fate would have it drained the game-winning 3-pointer from the top of the key with less than one second to play against Maryland to secure an 85–83 victory and a trip to the Sweet 16 — the ninth time in 13 straight Tournaments that Izzo’s team advanced to the second weekend of the Big Dance.
Izzo’s 15-season body of work at Michigan State speaks for itself:
2000 – NCAA Champion
2009 – NCAA Runner-up
2010 – Final Four
2005 – Final Four
2001 – Final Four
1999 – Final Four
2003 – Elite Eight
2008 – Sweet 16
1998 – Sweet 16
2007 – Two-and-Out
2006 – One-and-Done
2004 – One-and-Done
2002 – One-and-Done
1997 – NIT
1996 – NIT
But this year’s Final Four run, without MSU’s floor leader and best player, may be his best job yet. Mirroring the grit and toughness of Izzo, the Spartans outfought giant-slayer Northern Iowa (59–52) to advance to the Elite Eight before outlasting Tennessee (70–69) to punch their ticket to Indianapolis — Izzo’s sixth Final Four in 12 years, something only UCLA’s John Wooden and Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski have done.
In fact, Izzo’s sixth Final Four appearance puts him in even more select company, as one of only seven coaches to make half a dozen national semi-finals:
Final Fours – Coach, School
12 – John Wooden, UCLA
11 – Mike Krzyzewski, Duke
10 – Dean Smith, North Carolina
7 – Roy Williams, North Carolina (3), Kansas (4)
6 – Tom Izzo, Michigan State
6 – Denny Crum, Louisville
6 – Adolph Rupp, Kentucky
Of course, the other six coaches on that list have won multiple national championships during their trips to the Final Four. Now, Izzo aims to become only the 14th coach in history to cut down the nets more than once:
Titles – Coach, School
10 – John Wooden, UCLA
4 – Adolph Rupp, Kentucky
3 – Bob Knight, Indiana
3 – Mike Krzyzewski, Duke
2 – Jim Calhoun, Connecticut
2 – Denny Crum, Louisville
2 – Billy Donovan, Florida
2 – Henry Iba, Oklahoma State
2 – Ed Jucker, Cincinnati
2 – Branch McCracken, Indiana
2 – Dean Smith, North Carolina
2 – Roy Williams, North Carolina
2 – Phil Woolpert, San Francisco
A national championship victory would also make Michigan State the seventh school in history to win it all three times — having celebrated following Earvin “Magic” Johnson’s highest-rated title game victory over Indiana State’s Larry Bird in 1979 and Izzo’s Mateen Cleaves-led Flint-stone crew of 2000.
Titles – School
11 – UCLA
7 – Kentucky
5 – Indiana
5 – North Carolina
3 – Duke
3 – Kansas
But the Spartans will have their hands full against Butler, a so-called “mid-major” that is on a 24-game winning streak and playing in front of a home crowd in Indianapolis.
“I definitely think they will probably have a majority of the crowd, but at the same time, we have loyal Spartan fans, so I think they’ll come out here and support us the best that they can,” said Lucious. “We are used to the big crowds against us.”
And since Izzo took over at Michigan State in 1995, the Spartans are used to success in the NCAA Tournament, something that is unlikely to change as long as the 55-year-old Iron Mountain, Mich., native — with a 35–11 career record in March Madness games — is patrolling the sidelines in East Lansing.
Spartan Spirit
The University of Oregon — backed by the millions of Nike founder and UO alum Phil Knight — is reportedly ready to offer Tom Izzo a contract worth more than John Calipari’s eight-year, $31.65-million deal at Kentucky.
Izzo is currently signed through 2016, making $3 million-plus per year on a deal that was finalized in 2009. So don’t expect the future Hall of Fame coach to head West anytime soon.
“I haven’t been contacted,” said Izzo. “The truth of the matter, whenever you have success, you get to be one of 10 names that pop up on these lists. I haven’t been contacted and I’m not going to comment on it again. I have a job to do and I’m happy with the job I have.”
Hoosier Homecoming
The Butler Bulldogs are headed back home to Indianapolis. But unlike most NCAA Tournament teams going home after being eliminated from the Big Dance, the Horizon League champs are returning to Indy as one of the Final Four teams still alive in March Madness — becoming the first hometown Final Four squad since John Wooden and UCLA cut down the nets in Los Angeles in 1972.
“We one of four teams left playing for a national championship,” said coach Brad Stevens, during a recent press conference on the Horizon League Network. “To still be playing, to still be a part of it is amazing.”
This year’s Cinderella story is the only team in the entire field to defeat No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, knocking off second-seeded Kansas State (63–56) in the Elite Eight and top-seed Syracuse (63–59) in the Sweet 16 after outlasting Murray State (54–52) in the second round and outgunning UTEP (77–59) in the opener.
Although Butler is not a member of one of the big six “BCS” conferences, it is not your typical mid-major underdog. A No. 5 seed, the Bulldogs are a balanced team — led by one of the country’s top wing players in Gordon Hayward, an athletic lead guard in Shelvin Mack and a savvy post player in Matt Howard — that had been ranked in the Top-10 for much of the season, notching wins against Ohio State, Xavier and UCLA. Still, Butler has no problem being this year’s feel-good story.
“I don’t mind being called a Cinderella. I don’t mind being called a mid-major. We don’t have the resources. But, you know, resources don’t play. We have five guys with heart,” explained Stevens.
And that may be enough to become not only local legends in Indianapolis but also national champions.
The Jimmy Chitwood Experience
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched that movie (Hoosiers). I lost count. Growing up in Indiana … I definitely love that movie.” – Butler sophomore Gordon Hayward, whose 33-year-old coach Brad Stevens looks more like Milan High’s real life 26-year-old Marvin Wood than the fictional Norman Dale played by Gene Hackman in the 1986 classic film.
Old School
In a recent interview on the Dan Patrick Show, former Duke star Grant Hill expressed concerns about this year’s Blue Devils after playing against them this summer. The legends squad was comprised of Hill, Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, Jay Williams and David McClure.
“I was down there this summer at Coach K’s fantasy camp. True story. Me, Laettner, Jay Williams — who played at Duke and had the motorcycle accident — and a couple other guys, played against the current guys in pick-up ball.
“And we kind of had our way with them. This is in June when none of us are really in shape. Laettner is 40 years old. These guys are half our age, and we’re actually beating them. In all honesty, I was a little worried about this year’s team. But they’ve certainly come together. They play well together,” said Hill.
“Well, Jay Williams who, God bless him, can only play on one leg, he’s killing Jon Scheyer. Laettner’s killing the Plumlee brothers. …
“(Coach K) was there, but he wasn’t watching. Obviously, he couldn’t because of the NCAA rules. But I’m sure he was excited to have his current players playing against his older players. You know, I say the whole story to say that I mean we had our way, we won, obviously we have experience, maybe they were in a little bit of awe.
“But I was worried. I thought this year’s team wasn’t going to be that good. I’m being very honest.”
Empire State of Mind
Although Bob Huggins was born in Morgantown, W. Va., and played at West Virginia from 1975-77 before becoming the coach of the Mountaineers in 2007, his roster has only one player from the Mountain State — Charleston’s own Cam Payne, who scored five points in 10 games this season.
The WVU roster, however, is loaded with players from the New York - New Jersey area, including the team’s top five scorers:
PPG – Player – Hometown
17.4 – Da’Sean Butler – Newark, N.J.
13.7 – Kevin Jones – Mount Vernon, N.Y.
12.0 – Devin Ebanks – Long Island City, N.Y.
9.3 – Darryl Bryant – Brooklyn, N.Y.
6.5 – Wellington Smith – Summit, N.J.
Those five players from the Empire State and Garden State combined to score 2,114 of the Mountaineers’ 2,695 total points (78.4 percent) and grab 1,000 of the team’s 1,440 rebounds (69.4 percent) this season.
