Thursday, March 28, 2024

Head coach Tom Izzo doesn't believe his team is an underdog

March 26, 2015
<p>Head coach Tom Izzo reacts to a call on Mar. 4, 2015, during the Michigan State basketball game against Purdue at Breslin Center, 534 Birch Rd. The Spartans defeated the Boilermakers, 72-66. Emily Nagle/The State News
</p>

Head coach Tom Izzo reacts to a call on Mar. 4, 2015, during the Michigan State basketball game against Purdue at Breslin Center, 534 Birch Rd. The Spartans defeated the Boilermakers, 72-66. Emily Nagle/The State News

Photo by Emily Nagle | The State News

Head coach Tom Izzo said he didn’t have a comment when asked about MSU earning the No. 7 seed in the NCAA Tournament an hour after falling to Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament.

But during his weekly press conference Tuesday, he said the Spartans deserve to be perceived as underdogs this season, though he personally doesn’t think the Spartans are underdogs.

He said he has a hard time believing anyone could call MSU an underdog given their experience and history of tournament success, but losses to several ranked opponents and free throw woes are the reason for MSU’s lower-than-usual seeding.

“I just can’t believe in this program that anyone would look at us as underdogs,” Izzo said. “One year you can be, but these guys have been through the others. We’re not underdogs. We’re not that much better than anybody. I think they have to be able to accept that.”

Losses to Illinois, Nebraska and Texas Southern weakened MSU’s case as a tournament team. Izzo himself questioned if the Spartans would qualify this season, a sentiment he has stated several times this season.

Izzo added he doesn’t think the Spartans have changed much. Outside of a few lineup changes, the Spartans continue to struggle from the line. Sunday’s finish against Virginia, which saw the team make 12 of their last 16 free throws after a rough start in that category, is an outlier until the Spartans match that performance in another game.

After the Virginia game, Izzo said to his team, “Take your phones, stick ‘em where the sun doesn’t shine, and stay off Twitter.” MSU has become a favorite to make the Final Four after the upset win over No. 2 Virginia. The general consensus from national media is that MSU was underseeded, but Izzo doesn’t want his players to read into that.

“So underdogged, not underdogged, I mean, we still deserve to be an underdog,” Izzo said. “We haven’t won those games, whatever my great excuses are. Free throws are part of the game. But at least I know we can play with those teams, yet we got to finish the job.

“That’s what I think our guys understand. A little humble pie early in the year is not good for you, but maybe for this team it served them well.”

Discussion

Share and discuss “Head coach Tom Izzo doesn't believe his team is an underdog” on social media.