Sunday Stats & Conversation, Izzo Style

08-09 Basketball AD & Department General Stat of the Day49

And just so we’re clear, understand that I’m not trying to diminish Michigan State’s roster; it’s a fine roster. But I’m not sure how many future NBA players are on that roster, and I am sure it’s not a roster as good as Connecticut’s roster.

But MSU’s roster just beat UConn’s roster of pros by nine less than a week after it beat Louisville’s roster of pros by 12, and hey, Big East fans, aren’t you glad Tom Izzo isn’t in your league? If not, you better be.

Why?

Because Tom Izzo is a badass, that’s why.

It is an off day at the Final Four and the country is ablaze with love for Tom Izzo. As well they should be. Gary Parrish lavished praise on Izzo in this piece that I think many of you will find very interesting.

At least it won’t be hard for NC State fans to yell “Go State” during Monday night’s National Championship game. But, I do not do this without any pain. MICHIGAN State surpassed NORTH CAROLINA State as the country’s ubiquitous ‘STATE’ about ten years ago. It’s very sad. What in the world does that land grant institution in one of the countries most depressed states and worst climates have over NC State? I will let you answer that on your own.

If you have some free time, I would welcome anyone interested/willing to share some information and links about the history of Michigan State’s program in our comments section.

I can’t help but recall that Ford Field’s previous match-up of Carolina vs Michigan State is the site that provided us the comments that Bobby Knight shared in the video below.  If you want to discuss that topic, simply click here.

How about the following interesting statistics to wow your friends?

  • EVERY player that has ever worn a uniform for Tom Izzo at Michigan State and has stayed all four seasons has played in at least one Final Four.
  • Tom Izzo is an astounding 14-2 in the NCAA Tournament on second games of weekends.  If Izzo wins the first game of a weekend (1st round; Sweet 16; or national semi-final) he is 14-2 in the next game.
  • ACCNow reminds us that a title game in a crappy city against the Big Ten in 1981 was the last time that Carolina made lost in a championship game.
  • Lee Fowler claims to ‘know basketball’, but in his decade at the helm of the NC State athletics department UNC-CH has attended Four Final Fours and could win their second national championship of his tenure.  Conversely, NC State has managed to win only five NCAA Tournament games.  One more F4 for the Tarheels and they’d have as many F4’s as we’d have tournament victories under Fowler.  Does anyone really wonder why?

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08-09 Basketball AD & Department General Stat of the Day

49 Responses to Sunday Stats & Conversation, Izzo Style

  1. redfred2 04/05/2009 at 11:07 AM #

    “X

  2. packalum44 04/05/2009 at 11:11 AM #

    “[Izzo] in his fifth Final Four in 11 years — a remarkable achievement anywhere, especially at a place like Michigan State.”

    I think many media folks and adults forget that kids don’t know or necessarily care about the longevity of a program. Kids don’t care about UCLA being a dynasty decades ago. They don’t care about Kentucky winning 7 titles. They don’t care about what UNC did in the 60s-90s. On the flip side, they don’t care about FL or MI St. being irrelevant in that same time period. 16-17 year old kids remembering the 5 final fours of Michigan State and that’s all they know or care about.

    Just like in anything else, its ‘what have you done for me lately’. And lately, MI St has done alot. They are a premier team in college B-Ball and have been for the past ten plus years.

  3. Sweet jumper 04/05/2009 at 11:23 AM #

    Izzo is a very good coach. I loved watching Calhoun’s boys go down. Now if Izzo and his troops can only make Travels Hopsbrough cry about what could have been(most of my Carowhina friends will rather say, “what should have been”) in his final college game, all will be right in the world.

    Most of the talking heads are not giving the Spartans much of a chance, but we all know that a talented, together team and a positive-thinking Italian coach can make elephants drive at Indy, etc… Keep your fingers crossed. GO State!

  4. lsutton5144 04/05/2009 at 11:42 AM #

    Hope he’s got enough badass left in him to win one more game, or we’ll have to hear it from the Holes again. Winning basketball just pushes Butchy closer to the exit door.

  5. Greywolf 04/05/2009 at 11:49 AM #

    If that idiot Fowler wasn’t so concerned with such inconsequential crap as:
    `
    Selection of a new Women’s BB coach
    Title IX Compliance
    Volleyball wins
    operating costs of non-revenue sports.
    new playing surface in Carter-Finley Stadium,
    renovation to the east stands in Carter-Finley Stadium
    renovation of the outdoor tennis facility,
    press box and new entrance to the Soccer Stadium,
    video scoreboard for Doak Field
    video scoreboard for Reynolds Coliseum.
    `
    Doesn’t that ass-hat know that what matters is wins in the NCAAT in BB? Doesn’t Foul-up understand that nobody gives two shits about budget and costs? WTF does he do for his salary? OK, so it’s the lowest in amongst the public ACC AD’s. I mean really, we ought to be stomping UNX and Dook’s asses in basketball with our wonderful history — the 1974 NC and the miracle of 1983.
    `
    Good job of calling Fowler out. Compared to the other minor shit he is responsible for, the BOT is seething over this shit. What an ass-wipe of an AD we have.

  6. TOBtime 04/05/2009 at 12:00 PM #

    ’83 was only a miracle if you believe what the media says. The NC State team of that year was extremely strong when healthy as the last quarter of the season showed (Whittenburg coming back from the foot injury?). The path went through the defending National Champions not once but twice in 2 weeks with resulting wins both times. Only the resiliency and sheer refuse to lose attitude was proven in the tournament.

    The strengths and weaknesses of our AD are well documented. One list is longer than the other.

  7. redfred2 04/05/2009 at 12:06 PM #

    X

  8. codebrown 04/05/2009 at 12:06 PM #

    IzzOn baby! Best tournament coach in this generation?

  9. buttPACKer 04/05/2009 at 12:09 PM #

    greywolf,

    EVERY AD in the league worries about these very same issues at their respective institutions.

    And, most of them HAVE actually managed a few “Ws” on their watch. . .

  10. wufpup76 04/05/2009 at 12:14 PM #

    What’s not to love about Tom Izzo?

    He gives his maximum, gets the max from his players and does it all w/out blatantly cheating, w/out a roster full of the “next greatest things” and he doesn’t curse (yep, no cursing … I can’t go 10 minutes without muttering foul language, usually about N.C. State).

    Worthy of all the respect and admiration that comes his way.

    It’s going to be easy to go full Sparty tomorrow night.

  11. RabidWolf 04/05/2009 at 12:17 PM #

    GO SPARTANS!!! I would LOVE to see State go after Izzo….get him here and drive Roy and K NUTS!!

    I’ll be decked out in my green and white Monday!

  12. wufpup76 04/05/2009 at 12:24 PM #

    ^Perhaps. He’d certainly get my vote for having a team focused, ready, and firing on all cylinders when the end of the year rolls around.

    It seems every season that the Spartans suffer a couple of unexpected losses or a huge blowout (Holes this season sans Suton) – but those are always early. By the time March rolls around they are usually a completely different team.

  13. wufpup76 04/05/2009 at 12:34 PM #

    ^Oops. Sorry about that.

  14. redfred2 04/05/2009 at 12:38 PM #

    X

  15. Greywolf 04/05/2009 at 1:45 PM #

    TOBtime
    April 5th, 2009 at 12:00 pm
    ‘83 was only a miracle if you believe what the media says. The NC State team of that year was extremely strong when healthy as the last quarter of the season showed (Whittenburg coming back from the foot injury?).
    `
    I was thinking more of the OT games, the near steal in the Championship game that would have sealed it for Houston and the air-ball that turned into the most seen dunk in NCAA history. And the dumb-assed decision of Guy Lewis to burn time off the clock instead of pushing the ball and letting Phi Slamma Jamma do its thing. The 83 team won a NC sandwiched around an NCAA 1st round loss and an NIT 1st round loss. And we all know how horrible it is to loss in the 1st or 2nd round.
    `
    But you keep on dreaming about what a powerful team this was.

  16. Greywolf 04/05/2009 at 1:48 PM #

    buttPACKer
    April 5th, 2009 at 12:09 pm

    EVERY AD in the league worries about these very same issues at their respective institutions.

    And every other AD has his team in going deep in the NCAAT, right. Or don’t you think Foul-up is an ass-wipe like I said?

  17. buttPACKer 04/05/2009 at 2:11 PM #

    And every other AD has his team in going deep in the NCAAT, right. Or don’t you think Foul-up is an ass-wipe like I said?

    LF’s incompetence runs the gamut of all sports fielded at State, save football–and we all know, that really happened despite him, not because of him.

    really, greywolf, are you honestly defending LF’s job performance? If so, I really question your intelligence.

  18. Paramarine 04/05/2009 at 2:12 PM #

    I’ve been thinking for at least four years that I would give my right nut for Tom Izzo to be our basketball coach.

  19. buttPACKer 04/05/2009 at 2:17 PM #

    you’re defending him!

    If that idiot Fowler wasn’t so concerned with such inconsequential crap as:
    `
    Selection of a new Women’s BB coach
    Title IX Compliance
    Volleyball wins
    operating costs of non-revenue sports.
    new playing surface in Carter-Finley Stadium,
    renovation to the east stands in Carter-Finley Stadium
    renovation of the outdoor tennis facility,
    press box and new entrance to the Soccer Stadium,
    video scoreboard for Doak Field
    video scoreboard for Reynolds Coliseum.
    `
    Doesn’t that ass-hat know that what matters is wins in the NCAAT in BB? Doesn’t Foul-up understand that nobody gives two shits about budget and costs? WTF does he do for his salary? OK, so it’s the lowest in amongst the public ACC AD’s. I mean really, we ought to be stomping UNX and Dook’s asses in basketball with our wonderful history — the 1974 NC and the miracle of 1983.
    `
    Good job of calling Fowler out. Compared to the other minor shit he is responsible for, the BOT is seething over this shit. What an ass-wipe of an AD we have.

    With this seething sarcasm , you can’t honestly say you were not sticking up for this moron!

  20. SMD 04/05/2009 at 2:23 PM #

    This is sorta off-topic, but I saw Sid at the Canes game last night. If it was not him, it was his twin – complete with the greying goatee. While I will admit to an outside chance of being mistaken, if I am correct, what the heck is he doing in town? The Final Four weekend is also the coaches convention.

  21. redfred2 04/05/2009 at 2:37 PM #

    X

  22. TaxWolf 04/05/2009 at 2:50 PM #

    In regards to Michigan State, seeing Judd Heathcote behind the bench with Magic reminded me that we also had two consecutive championship winning coaches over multiple decades.

    I couldn’t help but imagine Sloan and DT behind the bench cheering on Valvano and our team.

    I guess fate (or a spineless administration that won’t stand up for its coaches)is a bitch sometimes.

  23. Greywolf 04/05/2009 at 2:57 PM #

    With this seething sarcasm , you can’t honestly say you were not sticking up for this moron!

    `
    Jed has real problems keeping that which ought to be kept out of the media out. He handled the Sidney Lowe hire clumsily. But his biggest mistake of all was misjudging who his enemies were.
    `
    ButtPACDKed, the thing with me is, 1. I don’t enjoy mob violence even when the victim is guilty of some crime so I occassionally make a few sarcastic remarks 2. I have no problem giving credit where credit is due. And YOU have to be a moron not to see that. 3. I believe that hate is a cancer on the human soul. No thank you. I pass on that. Don’t let me stop you, click on the ads, the hate campaign needs the money.

  24. blpack 04/05/2009 at 3:01 PM #

    The man can coach. He has beaten KU, L’ville and UConn. Not bad. If he can get one more it would be awesome. Go Green!

  25. Greywolf 04/05/2009 at 3:20 PM #

    I guess fate (or a spineless administration that won’t stand up for its coaches)is a bitch sometimes.
    `
    I read where LF stands up for the too much, Which is it?

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