Michigan State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Entertains Globetrotters In Exhibition Game
11/12/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 12, 2000
EAST LANSING, Mich. -
Note Of The Night
No Foolin' Around - Don't expect any buckets of water or confetti to be thrown into the crowd or the referee's shirt to be raised to expose his belly. While the Harlem Globetrotters are nationally known for their entertaining brand of basketball, they are also accomplished players. Their roster includes Donnie Boyce, an all-conference standout at Colorado and Alex Sanders who graduated from Louisville in 1999 and scored 16 against the Spartans in a Jan. 2, 1999 game at the Breslin Center which MSU won, 69-57.
Three More Notes No Media Person Should Be Without
1. Now That's What I Call A Winning Streak - The Globetrotters enter tonight's contest with a 1,270-game winning streak. This includes a 76-69 win over 2000 Division II Champion Metro State (Colorado) on Friday night and an 82-80 win over the NABC College All-Stars during the 2000 Final Four weekend. A year earlier, the Globetrotters swept a three-game series against the 1999 College All-Stars.
2. Spartan Globetrotters - Three former Michigan State basketball letterwinners have gone onto play for the Harlem Globetrotters, including Rickey Ayala (1952-54), Earvin Johnson (1978-79) and Harrison Stepter (1968-69). On April 19, 1997, Johnson signed with the Globetrotters as they defeated the College All-Stars, 126-114. (Years indicate years lettered at MSU.)
3. Home Cooking - Michigan State enters the 2000-01 season with a 28-game home winning streak. It marks the second-longest active streak in the nation behind only Utah's 52-straight wins. In 1999-2000, the Spartans won their 14 home games by an average of 25 points. The 16 games at the Breslin Center this season mark the most regular-season home games for Michigan State since the 1996-97 season.
Coach Izzo - In his sixth year, Tom Izzo is 120-48 (.714), 59-25 (.702) in the Big Ten, as the coach of the Michigan State basketball program. In 1999, Izzo was named national coach of the year by Basketball Times, while earning similar honors from Associated Press, Basketball News and the USBWA in '98. With MSU's 77-71 overtime win over Indiana on Jan. 11, 2000, Izzo became just the fourth Spartan coach to reach the 100-win mark. Izzo's 120 wins are tied for seventh most by a coach in his first five seasons of coaching.
Much Too Young To Feel This Old - Although just in his sixth year, Tom Izzo is currently tied for the second-longest coaching tenure in the Big Ten, trailing only Purdue's Gene Keady (21st year). Penn State's Jerry Dunn and Wisconsin's Dick Bennett are also in their sixth year.
Probable Starters
Michigan State Spartans Pts. Reb. Ast.F - #34 Andre Hutson (Sr., 6-8,, 245) 10 14 3F - #11 David Thomas (Sr., 6-7, 210) 11 4 2F - #23 Jason Richardson (So., 6-6, 220)10 9 0G - #14 Charlie Bell (Sr., 6-3, 200) 15 5 2G - #1 Marcus Taylor (Fr., 6-3, 190) 9 0 6
Thirty-Something x 2 - Michigan State is the only school in the nation to record 30 or more victories in each of the past two seasons, posting a 33-5 mark in 1998-99 and 32-7 record in 1999-2000.
Thirty Something x 2 (Take Two) - MSU is just the second school in Big Ten history to record 30 or more wins in consecutive seasons. Indiana did it in 1974-75 and 1975-76. The 65 Spartan wins over the past two years are the most ever by a Big Ten school in a two-year period.
Harlem Globetrotters Notes
A Familiar Face - When Tom Izzo looks down the sidelines he will see a familiar face on the Harlem Globetrotters' bench. Globetrotters coach Milton Barnes served as Eastern Michigan's coach for four seasons prior to taking his current position. In four years at EMU he posted a 62-53 record. Izzo is 2-0 against Barnes coached squads.
You Again - A recent addition to the Globetrotter roster, Wayne Turner set an NCAA record for games played with 151 during his career at Kentucky. Turner was part of two NCAA Championship squads and three Final Four teams, but his quest for a fourth Final Four as a senior was cut short by the Spartans in 1999. Turner scored five points and dished out eight assists as MSU defeated UK, 73-66, in the Midwest Regional Final.
Michigan Connections - Besides head coach Milton Barnes, two Globetrotters have ties to the state of Michigan. Tony Tolbert played two seasons at Michigan and two at Detroit-Mercy. He also hails from the same high school (Detroit DePorres) as MSU forward Aloysius Anagonye. Jesse "Super-J" Drain earned Detroit News and Free Press Dream Team status as a senior at Saginaw High School.
Iron Mountain Stories - No, this is not a note a Tom Izzo. The Globetrotters also have some history with Iron Mountain. In 1934, the Globetrotters played their 1,000th game in the Upper Peninsula town.
Globetrotters In Competitive Play - Harlem Globetrotters owner and chairman Mannie Jackson is determined to return the team to its roots as one of the top professional basketball teams in the world. To accomplish this feat he has worked to schedule the team in competitive games. In 1997, he resurrected the World Series of Basketball after a 35-year layoff, pitting the nation's top college players against the Globetrotters in an annual series. In 1995, they posted a 10-1 record against Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's Legendary All-Stars. In January of 2000 the Globetrotters and the National Association of Basketball Coaches reached a three-year agreement by which the Globetrotters will play a group of college all-stars annually at the Final Four.
The College Tour - The MSU game marks the middle stop in a three-game series against college teams for the Globetrotters. On Friday, they defeated Metro State, 76-69. The Globetrotters will wrap up their trip on Wednesday night as they travel to West Lafayette, Ind. to take on the Purdue Boilermakers.
Last Loss - The last time the Globetrotters lost was Sept. 12, 1995, in Vienna, Austria, when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's Legendary All-Stars defeated the Globetrotters, 91-85. The loss snapped an 8,829-game win streak. The last loss prior to that was Jan. 5, 1971, when the New Jersey Reds edged the Globetrotters, 100-99 in overtime.
Looking Ahead - Oakland Golden Grizzlies
Winning Streaks - The Spartans open the regular season on Nov. 19 with a 2 p.m. game against the Oakland Golden Grizzlies. While Michigan State opens the regular season with a nation's best 11-game winning streak, Oakland owns the country's second-longest streak at six games. The Golden Grizzlies open their season at home against Michigan on Friday before traveling to East Lansing.
More On MSU Basketball
The Champs! Round Four - Michigan State was recently tabbed as the preseason favorite by the league's coaches at Big Ten Basketball Media Day. Should the Spartans capture the conference crown, they will become just the fourth team to win four-consecutive Big Ten titles, joining Chicago (1907-10), Ohio State (1960-64) and Indiana (1973-76).
If Only These Stats Counted - It was only an exhibition game, but the Spartans put up some impressive numbers against Northern Michigan. Andre Hutson (10 pts. and 14 reb.) and Zach Randolph (11 pts. and 13 reb.) led the way with each one posting a double-double. Jason Richardson was close with 10 points and nine rebounds. Charlie Bell led MSU scorers with 15 points. The Spartans also dominated on defensive and on the boards, holding Northern Michigan to 22.4% shooting from the field and outrebounding the Wildcats, 56-24.
MSU Rebounds vs. Opponent Points - Against Northern Michigan, the Spartans had more rebounds (56) than the Wildcats had points (40). Last year, Michigan State posted similar efforts on seven occasions, including games against Wisconsin (4/1 - 42 reb., 41 pts.), Valparaiso (3/16 - 39 reb., 38 pts.), Minnesota (3/2 - 45 reb., 43 pts.), Wisconsin (2/12 - 50 reb., 44 pts.), Northwestern (1/27 - 42 reb., 29 pts.), Howard (12/3 - 54 reb., 45 pts.) and Toledo (11/22 - 45 reb., 33 pts.).
Predicting The Future - Michigan State was selected by the Big Ten Coaches as the preseason favorite to win the conference. The league's media selected Illinois first with MSU second.
Carrying On With The Flintstone Tradition - Charlie Bell was named Preseason First-Team All-Big Ten by both the league's media and coaches. Should he finish the season with first-team all-conference honors it will mark the fourth consecutive season in which a Spartan has been named first-team all-league, joining former MSU stars and Flint natives Mateen Cleaves (1998-2000) and Morris Peterson (1999-2000).
The Past Is Too Good To Ignore - While past success does not guarantee future championships, some stats from the past three years are worth repeating, including MSU's record in Big Ten action, 41-7, in the Breslin Center, 40-3, in postseason play, 18-3, in the NCAA Tournament, 12-2.
Proving The Old Saying True - Rebounding and defense really do win championships. Just ask the Spartans. During Coach Izzo's tenure, they have regularly been ranked among the nation's leaders in both categories, including the 1999-2000 season when they led the country in rebounding margin at +11.7, two full rebounds ahead of second-place Stanford, and ranked eighth in scoring defense at 58.9 ppg.
In Case You Missed The Trip To Indy Last March - MSU plays host to the other three teams from the 2000 Final Four (Florida, North Carolina and Wisconsin) in East Lansing this season. This is the first time in history that a defending NCAA Champion has played the other three Final Four participants at home the following year. The always tough schedule also includes non-conference contests at home against Kentucky and in East Rutherford, N.J., against Seton Hall. Nine of the Spartans' 2000-01 opponents made an appearance in the 2000 NCAA Tournament.
Poll Cats - Michigan State has spent the last 45 weeks ranked in the Associated Press Top 25, including 38-straight weeks in the top 15. This includes the Spartans' number-three ranking in the preseason AP poll.
In Order To Be The Best, You Have To Play The Best - Once again, the Spartans boast one of the nation's most difficult schedules. Six of MSU's opponents are ranked in the ESPN/USA Today Preseason Top 25, including five in the top 12. They include North Carolina (4), Illinois (9), Seton Hall (10), Florida (11), Kentucky (12) and Wisconsin (22).
No Slivers Here - Last year, ten Spartans averaged over 10 minutes per game with only Mateen Cleaves seeing more than 30 minutes of action. Look for this year's playing group to be just as deep.
The Golden Arches - Michigan State boasts one of the top freshmen classes in the nation with McDonald's All-Americans Zach Randolph and Marcus Taylor. Randolph earned MVP honors at the 2000 McDonald's All-American game. Randolph and Taylor join sophomore Jason Richardson as McDonald's All-Americans on the Spartan roster.
U-S-A, U-S-A - Three members of the MSU squad gained experience playing for Team USA over the summer. Zach Randolph and Marcus Taylor were on the 2000 USA Hoop Summit Team that defeated an International Select squad, 98-97. Randolph earned MVP honors at the Hoop Summit. Randolph and Jason Richardson were members of the silver-medal winning World Championship for Young Men Qualifying Team, where Richardson ranked second on the team in points and third in rebounds, while Randolph ranked third in points and second in rebounds. Richardson also earned a spot on the Men's Select Team that competed against the 2000 US Olympic Dream Team, scoring a team-high 20 points along with a team-best five rebounds and four assists.
Wizards Of Westwood - Seniors Charlie Bell and Andre Hutson were named to the John Wooden Award Preseason All-American Team. Bell was also announced as a top-25 vote getter. Last year, Mateen Cleaves and Morris Peterson earned spots on the 10-man Wooden All-American Team. Bell is also one of 30 Preseason Candidates for the Naismith Award.
