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Sports | 1000

FOOTBALL

MSU wants to press secondary more

Tom Keller
March 26, 2007

Opposing wide receivers might want to keep some breath mints handy. MSU's defensive backs plan on getting very up-close and personal next season. The secondary, one of the most maligned units on the MSU football team during the last few seasons, is revamping its philosophy and relying more heavily on press coverage, in which defensive backs make contact with receivers at the line of scrimmage in order to disrupt their routes. "It messes up timing more than anything," secondary coach Harlon Barnett said Friday after spring practice.

ICE HOCKEY

MSU, Lerg shine in wins

Zack Colman
March 26, 2007

Grand Rapids — Sophomore goaltender Jeff Lerg was supposed to let Hobey Baker goaltending candidates Notre Dame's David Brown and Boston's John Curry control the NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional at Van Andel Arena. Instead, it was Lerg who looked like he was vying for college hockey's top honor, as he stopped 46-of-48 shots in two games.

SPORTS

East Lansing succeeds as host

Matt Bishop
March 23, 2007

With the dust settled and the smoke cleared, the NCAA Tournament's trip to East Lansing is considered a success on all fronts. MSU hosted the first and second rounds of the women's tournament at Breslin Center this past Saturday through Tuesday and led all eight cities hosting opening-round games in attendance. Reported attendance • East Lansing — 21,340 • Pittsburgh — 21,181 • Hartford — 20,714 • Raleigh — 12,372 • Minneapolis — 12,218 • Austin — 11,697 • Stanford — 4,111 (No reported first-round attendance) • Los Angeles — 3,386 • Along with the attendance numbers, approximately 200 members of the media held credentials, according to MSU Sports Information.

BASKETBALL

Forget conference awards, here's the superlatives you really need to know

Ethan Conley
March 23, 2007

Now that the MSU basketball team's season has come to a close, it's time to hand out some awards. Most likely to say something that can't be printed in The State News without heavy editing — sophomore guard Travis Walton Walton is pretty tame when he's speaking at the podium during post-game press conferences, but if you're in earshot when the Spartans huddle up before taking the court, prepare for some fantastic sound bites.

ICE HOCKEY

Midwest Region highlighted by goalies

Zack Colman
March 23, 2007

Athletes probably get used to being overlooked when they're 5-foot-6. But not sophomore goaltender Jeff Lerg. Lerg, who was named the team's Most Valuable Player on Monday, may be forgotten among Hobey Baker candidates such as Notre Dame goaltender David Brown and Boston goaltender John Curry.

BASKETBALL

Spartans could be 13 deep next season, Joseph may transfer

Tom Keller
March 23, 2007

The locker room is empty. The equipment is packed away. The players are on hiatus for two weeks — "13 1/2 more days than last year," head coach Tom Izzo said. The season is over for the MSU men's basketball team — a grueling campaign that saw the Spartans go from preseason doormat to a few minutes away from a Sweet 16 berth. "The biggest problem now is where do we go?" Izzo said Wednesday at his year-end press conference.

ICE HOCKEY

Vukovic becoming total package

Zack Colman
March 23, 2007

What started out as a joke has now taken on a sort of truth for junior defenseman Daniel Vukovic. When Vukovic scored his first goal of the season to lift MSU in a come-from-behind victory over Miami (Ohio) on Jan.

SPORTS

Season ends sadly, but team's future bright

State News women's basketball reporter Matt Bishop discusses the women's basketball team's loss to Rutgers in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, how this season will be remembered and the situation surrounding head coach Joanne P.

SPORTS

Senior gymnast breaks MSU record

Jacob Carpenter
March 22, 2007

After a record-breaking performance Sunday, Spartans gymnast Kristen Coleman was named Big Ten gymnast of the week on Wednesday. The senior from Cornwall, Ontario, Canada broke her own all-around performance record against Western Michigan with a 39.625 tally, a full point higher than her previously set school record. Coleman set a personal high on floor exercise Sunday with a 9.950, her highest individual apparatus score of the night.

BASKETBALL

Tourney time a holiday for hoops reporter

State News basketball reporter Tom Keller covered MSU's postseason run last week in Winston-Salem, N.C., and was reminded why this is his favorite — and most fattening — time of year. If you don't like the NCAA Tournament, I'm not sure we can be friends.

SPORTS

MSU feels home-court advantage

Steve Highfield
March 20, 2007

Breslin Center was half full for Sunday's game against Delaware. Butu when those fans are as loud as they were during the first-round tournament win, it doesn't necessarily matter how many people are in the seats. "It felt almost like it was a sellout," sophomore guard Mia Johnson said.

ICE HOCKEY

Comley wants tourney berth to relax Spartans

Zack Colman
March 20, 2007

Finally, the pressure to get in is gone. MSU is in the NCAA Tournament, and one could only imagine the metaphorical sigh of relief the entire team released when it found out. After weeks of struggling, there is indeed a silver lining. There's a postseason. But still, the team has a longing to play as it did in its run that spanned more than two months.

SPORTS

Monday musings

Tom Keller
March 19, 2007

After six straight NCAA Tournament-less seasons, Michigan fired men's basketball coach Tommy Amaker on Saturday.