That was the year in which the MSU men’s basketball team faced off against Kansas, DePaul, Duke, Oklahoma, Kentucky, UCLA and Syracuse before the Spartans faced a single Big Ten opponent.

Izzo received a lot of attention (mostly criticism) for the brutal nonconference schedule. In that span, MSU went 1-6, with the only win coming against DePaul. A main motivation for such a difficult schedule could be to prepare the team for a tough conference agenda and a possible NCAA Tournament run. That didn’t happen. The Spartans fizzled out that year with a first-round loss to Nevada and ended the season with an 18-12 record.

Since then, Izzo’s nonconference scheduling has lightened up a bit. This year’s schedule works that way. On paper, it may not seem like a tough one, but it’s just the right preparation for the Big Ten, and it will have this team poised and ready to make a run in March.

Starting out with games against teams like Jacksonville and IPFW at home are giving the freshmen, who are expected to contribute a great deal this year, a chance to find their legs. Then, mix in a home game against N.C. State and a game at The Palace of Auburn Hills against No. 4 Texas and the Spartans could have an impressive r