Izzo preparing team for Old Spice Classic

With arguably the toughest four-game stretch in program history on the horizon, MSU men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo is preparing for a stressful holiday season.

“This might be toughest four-game stretch because … none of (the games) are at home,” Izzo said. “It just gives me something else to worry about over Thanksgiving.”

The No. 5 Spartans will travel to Orlando, Fla., later this week to participate in the Old Spice Classic, a tournament that features eight teams boasting a combined record of 19-1. Four of the teams are ranked, including No. 9 Gonzaga, No. 12 Tennessee and No. 21 Georgetown, and seven of them played in last season’s NCAA Tournament.

“Gonzaga right now is playing as good as anybody — it probably has the most number of scorers back in their lineup,” Izzo said. “But I watched a little bit of Oklahoma State — they just played Tulsa — and I’ve never seen that many athletes.

“I have not seen Tennessee yet, I’ve seen a little bit of Georgetown, and maybe, believe it or not, one of the better teams in the tournament could be Siena. They’ve got all five starters back and had an incredible year last year.”

The Spartans open the tournament at 7 p.m. Thursday against Maryland (3-0 overall). The winner of that game will play the victor of the Gonzaga/Oklahoma State game on Friday.

After that gauntlet, the Spartans will return north to take on No. 1 North Carolina on Dec. 3 at Ford Field in Detroit.

Morgan’s improvement

Through two games, Raymar Morgan is living up to the promise that made him a 2008 Wooden Award Preseason candidate.

The 6-foot-8 junior forward leads the Spartans with 21.5 points per game and is shooting 74 percent from the field. He’s also getting to the free-throw line more frequently and is avoiding turnovers, which marred his play last season.

“Raymar has elevated his play,” Izzo said. “He’s been more aggressive, he’s been moving around a little bit, playing some three, some four. Maybe he feels more comfortable now to be able to do that (and) maybe the defense doesn’t feel as comfortable because they have to guard him with different people at different times.”

Despite his significant improvement, Izzo isn’t putting too much stock in Morgan’s quick start.

Last season, Morgan averaged 18.3 points through 14 games. However, he averaged just 11.8 points the rest of the way.

“He had a good start last year,” Izzo said. “It’s whether he’s mature enough now to continue this on a game-to-game basis.”

Suton’s health

Just when the pain in Goran Suton’s right knee was beginning to subside, the senior center hurt his left knee last Wednesday against Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne.

“He’s been struggling for three weeks with a knee injury and re-hurt one early in the game against IPFW and really hasn’t practiced since,” Izzo said. “He’s had very little practice time and that’s created a tougher situation for us.”

Izzo said Suton’s injury will be further evaluated today, and he’ll discuss with his medical staff whether the Big Ten’s leading returning rebounder will be able to play in the tournament.

“We’ve got to get him healthy, whatever it is,” said Izzo, adding that senior Marquise Gray and freshman Draymond Green have stepped up in his absence. “I can’t give you a good honest answer right now (regarding) whether he’ll play a little, play at all or play a lot, but a lot would seem slim to none.”