After returning from the Great Alaska Shootout with a fifth-place finish, men's basketball head coach Tom Izzo wasn't happy.

So he called on the Izzone to give the Spartans an extra boost against Virginia in a mass e-mail.

"I am asking each and every member of the Izzone to take a personal interest in the outcome of this game by rocking Breslin Center like it has never been rocked before," the e-mail read.

MSU's student section didn't disappoint. During a 17-0 Spartan run late in the first half, Breslin was deafening.

"It's amazing having the whole crowd into it," computer science sophomore Aaron Stryker said. "It's over-satisfying."

Stryker wasn't worried about the Izzone answering the call, but he said he wasn't sure about the rest of the fans.

"I didn't think they'd do it," Stryker said. "They had to prove themselves."

Nationally televised on ESPN, Izzo reminded the Izzone of the importance of Wednesday night's game.

"We want to fire up Dick Vitale on national TV and let everyone see for themselves that the Spartans are still in the race," Izzo said.

Helping to sway Vitale to the side of the Green and White was a larger-than-life poster unveiled before the game, which featured Vitale wearing an Izzone shirt with the words "It's Awesome Baby."

"It's always great to have a guy like Dick Vitale," mathematics senior Josh Ormiston said. "Even people who don't know basketball know him."

Eric McKinney can be reached at mckinn54@msu.edu.