Indianapolis - Like many Spartans on spring break, Bernie Brown went south with his friends.
But unlike most snow birds, the mechanical engineering junior's road trip ended at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Brown stood topless in the stands at the 2004 Big Ten Men's Basketball Tournament, sporting body paint in the form of a Paul Davis jersey, with an eclectic group of friends.
Enter MSU hospitality business junior Brad Barenie, a self-proclaimed "die-hard Indiana fan", who painted on his Hoosiers jersey, and friend Tim Dupuis, modeling - you guessed it - a maize and blue uniform for the event.
Brown and Dupuis, who have been friends since high school, paid $225 each for all-sessions tickets to watch the conference battles, money Barenie said was well-spent.
"It's great to watch basketball all day long and see all the fans from other schools, along with the different songs and bands," he said.
Such was the scene at this year's conference tourney, where fans from each of the 11 Big Ten schools came together to root for their favorite team.
A team of three children huddled and swayed together as MSU's starters were announced, mimicking the actual squad perfectly, except for their heights. Elsewhere in the arena, clown wigs in team colors, body paint, player jerseys and homemade signs dotted the crowd. Select fans appeared on the arena's jumbo screen to sing their school's fight song, drawing both cheers and jeers from the fans.
Although one might consider Dupuis, a Michigan student, an odd choice of companion for the tournament, Brown said there is relatively little conflict between the two.
"We don't fight about it," Brown said, laughing. "He knows State's better."
The intragroup rivalries also rang true for 1975 MSU graduate Linda Kehm and her husband Bill Rich. Kehm's parents are Illini alumni, so she sported both a Spartans and an Illinois pin on her sweatshirt. She made it clear, however, that had the two teams met in the final, her loyalties would remain with her alma mater.
Kehm added there was an equally rewarding Big Ten experience outside the walls of Conseco, where fans flooded the streets each evening, yelling things like "Go Green! Go White!", and "Boiler up!" from passing automobiles.
"I love it all," she said. "It's fun to get out shopping and go around downtown and see all the people in all the different colors. We met a group of Badgers at the mall earlier, and they were growling behind us."
No doubt MSU's 68-66 semifinal loss to Wisconsin left a sour taste in Spartans fans' mouths, leaving some to wonder whether Florida might have been a better place to spend a spring break.
But did Brown think he missed out on the warm southern weather?
"No way," he said, as dried green paint flaked off his body onto the arena floor. "I've had my shirt off all day."
