MSU has an illustrious NCAA Tournament history that spans nearly six decades. The Spartans are making their 30th all-time tournament appearance in 2016, with 24 of those coming since 1990. With that in mind, we decided to take a look at MSU March Madness history, from coach Forrest Anderson’s late 1950s teams to Tom Izzo’s 21st century dynasty.
MSU and the NCAA Tournament by the numbers
Head coach Tom Izzo and his team celebrate the win March 29, 2015, during the East Regional round of the NCAA Tournament in the Elite Eight against Louisville at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. The Spartans defeated the Cardinals, 76-70.
41
The number of points Adreian Payne scored in MSU’s 2014 first-round victory over No. 13-seeded Delaware. Payne set a school record for most points in an NCAA Tournament game, beating Greg Kelser's previous record of 34 points during MSU's 1979 title run led by Magic Johnson.
Payne’s 41 points are the second-most ever in the NCAA Tournament by a Big Ten player. Payne also set a NCAA Tournament record for free throws made/attempted, 17-for-17, during the Spartans’ 93-78 win. MSU would go on to fall to eventual champions Connecticut in the Elite Eight.
27
The number of rebounds Johnny Green pulled down in MSU’s 1957 NCAA Tournament opener win over Notre Dame. In the 85-83 victory, Green also led the Spartans in scoring with 20 points. Green holds all of the top three tournament rebounding performances in MSU history, as he grabbed 23 boards in a 1959 game against Louisville and 19 in the 1957 Final Four loss to North Carolina.
Thanks to two record-setting performances, Green averaged 19.3 rebounds per game in the 1957 tournament, which still stands as the 4th-best rebounding clip in all of NCAA Tournament history.
19
The number of consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the Spartans under Tom Izzo, including 2016. The famed coach, hired in 1995, reached the NIT in his first two seasons, and has made the NCAA field every year since.
MSU has reached seven Final Fours in Izzo’s first 18 tournament appearances, and he boasts a .730 tournament winning percentage.
7
The seed of the 2015 Final Four team, the lowest of any of MSU’s Final Four squads in the seeding era (since 1979). They claimed upset victories over No. 2-seed Virginia, No. 3-seed Oklahoma and No. 4-seed Louisville on their way to a Final Four berth.
6.6
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The number of seconds left when the No. 5 seed Spartans inbounded the ball down 83-82 to No.4 Maryland in the second round of the 2010 tournament. Draymond Green took the ball down court and found Korie Lucious for the buzzer-beating, game-winning 3-pointer.
The 2010 Spartans would go on to reach MSU’s second consecutive Final Four.
4:29
The amount of time Mateen Cleaves missed after suffering a high ankle sprain during the third quarter of the 2000 national championship game against Florida.
“They would have had to amputate my leg to get me off the court,” Cleaves told CBS News after the game.
Cleaves scored 18 points to help the Spartans capture an 89-76 victory, and was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player.
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4
The Spartans finished in fourth place in their first-ever NCAA tournament appearance in 1957. The 1957 NCAA Tournament was the first time MSU basketball had ever played in a postseason basketball tournament.
The Spartans advanced to the Final Four in a 23-team tournament format, where they were defeated by North Carolina. They then lost the third-place game to San Francisco.
3
The number of consecutive No. 1 seeds the Spartans were awarded and Final Fours the team made in the 1999, 2000 and 2001 tournaments. Charlie Bell, Andre Hutson and Brandon Smith were the only players to play on all three Final Four teams.
MSU has been awarded a No. 1 seed only two other times, once in 1990 and once in 2012.
2
Earvin “Magic” Johnson posted the only two tournament triple-doubles in school history, both in the 1979 tournament. He scored 13 points, 17 assists and 10 rebounds in the first round against Lamar and then 29 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds in the Final Four against Penn.
Magic’s all-around excellence helped lead the Spartans to the 1979 NCAA Championship, the first in school history. Johnson was named Most Outstanding Player, and he nearly averaged a triple-double for the tournament, with 21.8 points, 10 assists, and 9.4 rebounds per game.
1
The number of times MSU has lost in St. Louis. The Spartans’ all-time tournament record in St. Louis is 4-1. MSU will play this year’s first-round matchup, and second-round if they advance, there. Izzo and the Spartans have won two Sweet 16 games and two Elite Eight games in the home of the Gateway Arch.
The Spartans have never played a tournament game in Chicago, the host city of the 2016 Midwest Region semifinals and finals, but they are 1-1 in suburban Evanston, Ill.
