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Wolverines come to Breslin minus Horton
If senior guard Kelvin Torbert has to pick one game to win all year, it'd be against Michigan. Sure, he wants to beat No.
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Team to utilize Ibok's wingspan
Redshirt freshman center Idong Ibok will get his chance to contribute this week. MSU head coach Tom Izzo is calling on the 6-foot-10 Lagos, Nigeria native to use his 7-foot-5 wingspan and 9-foot-3 reach to challenge every shot in practice. "We're giving him a chance to swat everything he can swat this week," Izzo said of Ibok, who hurt his hand before the season and has redshirted, but still practices with the team.
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Minn. native Anderson puts on show for crowd, key down stretch for MSU
Minneapolis - As the final buzzer sounded Saturday, Alan Anderson found Chris Hill near mid-court and wrapped his arms around him before the teammates bumped chests. It was a brief moment of emotion and satisfaction for MSU's seniors, who were criticized as a group last week for their lack of toughness.
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Defense contains Grier for 10 points; injured Hagen 'heroic' for Minnesota
Minneapolis - It's all about the defense. Three days after torching Ohio State for 22 points and 12 rebounds, Minnesota guard Vincent Grier was shut down by MSU's defense as the No.
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Sigh of relief
For the first 19:56 of the game, MSU junior guard Maurice Ager looked to be repeating his performance from Sunday's game in which he finished 1-of-8.
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Illinois, U-M perfect in conference play
The dust has settled after week two of Big Ten play, and two teams remain undefeated - Michigan and Illinois. But both squads are hitting the heart of Big Ten scheduling.
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Keady makes final trip to Breslin Center as coach
It will be the end of an era tonight at Breslin Center. The No. 19 MSU men's basketball team will say farewell to Gene Keady, when the legendary Purdue head coach makes his final appearance in East Lansing as his 25-year career as coach winds down. Keady owns a 25-21 all-time record against the Spartans. "I'm looking forward to playing Purdue," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said.
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Wis. takes 6th win against MSU
Madison, Wis. - A day after the No. 15 Spartans watched an eight-point lead slip away in the final three minutes of a 62-59 loss to Wisconsin, head coach Tom Izzo defended his players. His senior group - guards Chris Hill and Kelvin Torbert and forward Alan Anderson - has often been criticized for its inability to win close games.
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Break 'nothing good' for team
Tom Izzo has always wanted to be a football coach. He loves the sport. But now that the head coach has eight days off until his team faces Wisconsin - similar to the time between football games - he's wishing he could face the Big Ten rival sooner. "There's nothing like having a situation like this and having eight days (off)," Izzo said.
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7th Heaven
Riding on a six-game winning streak, the No. 20 MSU men's basketball team made very few mistakes, committing a season-low of eight turnovers while forcing 19 in a 87-58 win over Northwestern on Saturday at Breslin Center. MSU (10-2 overall, 2-0 Big Ten) snapped the Wildcats' four-game winning streak while extending its own to seven games for the first time since the 2000-01 season, when MSU opened the season with 12 straight wins.
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Izzo not satisfied despite changes
Washington, D.C. - After the MSU basketball team's 13-point loss to George Washington on Saturday, head coach Tom Izzo said there will be changes.
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Spartans win consolation game, 66-60
Washington, D.C. - The MSU basketball team continued to struggle in the second day of the BB&T Classic, but escaped with a 66-60 win over George Mason on Sunday in the consolation game at the MCI Center. "We just didn't do the things we needed to," MSU head coach Tom Izzo said, while talking about his team's inability to widen its lead over the Patriots (3-3). "We got sloppy in the second half; we turned the ball over and so many of them were unforced, and that's just a lack of focus," he said. Izzo made some lineup changes after the No.
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Devils' night
Durham, N.C. - No. 10 Duke beat No. 11 MSU 81-74, Tuesday night in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Junior guard J.J.
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Spartans rout Colonels in high fashion
For head coach Tom Izzo, Saturday's game against Nicholls State was a win, but the game did not go the way he would have liked. The No.
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Up and running
MSU head coach Tom Izzo was looking for better defense from his No. 10 Spartans on Tuesday night, after giving up 72 points in their first game. Izzo got some defense and a lot of offense, in a 104-46 win over Wisconsin-Green Bay (1-1) at Breslin Center, while doing well in the three aspects he has been focusing on since the start of practices. "It is encouraging that we went into the game with three objectives: to do a better job with our turnovers, do a better job with our rebounding and do a better job with our defense," Izzo said.
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3-year starter Torbert steps back without complaints
It's possible that Kelvin Torbert will become the next Morris Peterson, a senior sixth man whose talents off the bench pushed MSU toward the 2000 NCAA National Championship. Head coach Tom Izzo has asked Torbert, for now, to adjust to a new role, to move from starter to bench player. It's a big change for someone who started 86 of the first 96 games he appeared in during his first three years at MSU.
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Izzo satisfied with 42-point blowout win vs. alma mater
Head coach Tom Izzo didn't take it easy on his old school, as MSU handed Northern Michigan a 42-point loss in its second exhibition game at Breslin Center on Sunday. Izzo said he was satisfied with MSU's unselfish play and rebounding in the 98-56 win against his alma mater. But he was disappointed the Spartans shot 41 percent from the field. "We did a poor job of shooting the ball, and I think we are the best shooting team I've ever had," he said. "It was our inside game that was really poor and I don't mean just our big guys.
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Green team beats White in scrimmage
The anticipation broke when the clock started at the MSU men's basketball team's annual Green and White game on Saturday.
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Rookies survive 1st practice week
These aren't typical high school practices, where everyone else is smaller and you're the best player on the team. The four freshmen on the MSU men's basketball team found that out last week. "Practice has been tough - very tough.
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Young backups ready to play alongside Davis
Each new basketball season is an opportunity for unproven players - young and old - to rise up, play more minutes and have a greater impact. This season, sophomore power forward Delco Rowley and sophomore center Drew Naymick are prime candidates to fill that role in the Spartans' frontcourt. And with an eager, talented batch of freshmen big men new on campus this season, Rowley and Naymick must step up while the opening is there. "I'm looking forward to those two coming in and stepping up and playing in these games because I've told them that this is the time to do it," junior center Paul Davis said.