Tom Izzo is not one to throw riddles at people - the man is nearly all about the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
So at Tuesday’s press conference, it wasn’t surprising to hear him state just how much the Big Ten Tournament will mean for MSU.
“This will be my most important Big Ten Tournament,” the three-time tourney winner said.
Coaching in his 17th Big Ten Tournament, the old ball coach is right on the money. This is indeed his most important conference tourney.
A strong tournament would cover up the blemish that was the regular season. The third-place conference finish can’t all be placed on Izzo and the team, because I’m going to guess they didn’t deliberately hurt themselves.
Still, the conference season isn’t a time period any Spartan wants to remember. This weekend could be a chance to show the college basketball world how good this healthy team really could be.
Raising a trophy will do more than just saying “See what we can do?” to the world. Ever since the team has been healthy, the Spartans have gone 1-2 with a nauseating loss to Illinois and a hard-fought loss to Ohio State on the road. Their lone win came against the nosediving Iowa Hawkeyes on senior night.
Three wins this weekend wouldn’t just mean lifting some hardware over their heads - it would mean raising their confidence through the roof.
But what if MSU doesn’t go on a tear and win on Sunday? Is this tournament a total waste? Do you have to start playing replays of the Rose Bowl to bring optimism back in your life?
No, but winning the first game on Friday is crucial.
Since Jan. 7, MSU has played with a healthy roster for only 120 minutes. Anyone watching the Ohio State game could tell the glue hasn’t dried on this practically new team, and the more games they can play, the better.
If the Spartans move into Saturday’s round, which they should, they will be getting 40 more minutes of playing time. Win on Saturday, and they will play for the title on Sunday to give themselves 120 minutes of tournament play.
Winning games is more than another accolade - it’s also doubling the amount of minutes they have played as a whole. With this time, they can iron out any wrinkles before the Big Dance rolls around.
It isn’t the NCAA Tournament just yet, but win or lose, the Spartans can set themselves up for a major run at another Final Four banner.
Matt Sheehan is a State News men’s basketball reporter. Reach him at msheehan@statenews.com.
