In front of nearly 4,000 fans in Austin, Texas, a year ago, the MSU volleyball team saw its season come to an end in the NCAA Tournament against No. 1-seeded Texas. Not only did the loss knock the Spartans out of the Big Dance, but it closed the book on head coach Cathy George’s winningest team since she came to MSU in 2005.
The first NCAA statistical report was released Monday, and the MSU women’s basketball team (5-0) statistically has the nation’s best defense, allowing just 37.4 points per game.
After completing a grueling regular season, members of the MSU football team’s (6-6 overall, 3-5 Big Ten) junior class will use the next few weeks to decide if they’ll return to school next season or forgo their senior year to enter the NFL draft.
Faced with the challenge of an opponent he’s never seen before, head coach Tom Izzo has sought out an old friend for help: Brian Gregory. The former MSU assistant coach and current Georgia Tech head coach has been one of the people Izzo has turned to in preparing for the annual Big Ten/ACC Challenge, which began Tuesday night and continues when the No. 13 MSU men’s basketball team (5-1) heads to Miami to take on the Hurricanes (3-1) tonight (7:30 p.m., ESPN).
In the hockey world, Thanksgiving weekend is a notorious one for tournaments. Rinks are ready for the influx of teams and players, and most hockey families grow accustomed to spending the days following the holiday circled around a sheet of ice.
When the MSU volleyball team found out they were slated to play San Diego in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the Spartans didn’t know very much about their next opponent.
The Crosstown Showdown, a baseball game between the MSU baseball team and the minor league Lansing Lugnuts, officially has been extended for the next three years, according to a release by the MSU athletics department.
After he spent the previous day lamenting his team’s overly giving holiday spirit following a 20-turnover performance against Louisiana-Lafayette, Tom Izzo’s squad decided to give him a gift that even he could appreciate Monday.
Since naming senior center Derrick Nix and sophomore guard Russell Byrd as co-team captains at the team’s media day in October, head coach Tom Izzo has seen leadership emerge from several different places across the roster.
Twelve games into the regular season, MSU hockey’s (4-6-2 overall, 3-4-1 CCHA) sophomore forward Matt Berry has emerged as an offensive powerhouse for the Spartans.
Many times, it’s not good enough for a leader to talk the talk, but they must walk the walk as well, and senior guard Jasmine Thomas is doing that for the MSU women’s basketball team (5-0) so far this season.
After riding a six-game winning streak late into November, the Spartans ended the regular season in the most unfortunate fashion possible — getting swept in their final two matches. The two sweeps weren’t against just any teams, either. They were against in-state rival Michigan and No. 1 Penn State.
Facing the possibility of MSU’s first bowlless season since 2006, the MSU football team (6-6 overall, 3-5 Big Ten) bounced back to secure its sixth win and a bowl berth with a 26-10 victory at Minnesota (6-6, 2-6) Saturday afternoon.
It’s not as sexy as a Big Ten title, but in many ways, it’s equally important.
Anxiety, nerves and a faint silence encompassed the room filled with members of the MSU volleyball team as they awaited the start of the NCAA volleyball selection show on Sunday.
Noticing people embracing the holiday spirit is a sight many enjoy, but for Tom Izzo, it’s forced him to take on a new role: Grinch.
Just two days after Thanksgiving, the MSU women’s basketball team had even more to be thankful for in their 68-35 win against Robert Morris on Sunday: depth.
As much as he would like to avoid it, turnovers are becoming a consistent problem for head coach Tom Izzo. And on Sunday, they almost became a much bigger problem.
Seven Spartans scored at least five points, and MSU had the largest rotation of the year as the MSU women’s basketball team (5-0) rolled over Robert Morris (0-5), 68-35, on Sunday afternoon.
The MSU women’s basketball team (5-0) cruised past Robert Morris 68-35 in their final home game in November.