Michigan State University Athletics
Izzo Leads Spartans Against Alma Mater In Exhibition Contest
11/11/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 11, 2005
EAST LANSING, Mich. -
Michigan Statevs. Northern Michigan
Nov. 12, 2005 - 8 p.m.East Lansing, Mich.Breslin Center (14,759)
Radio: Spartan Sports Network - Will Tieman (Play by Play), Gus Ganakas (Color). Flagship - WMMQ 94.9 FM/WJIM 1240 AM
TV: None
Michigan State Game Notes
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Scouting The Wildcats - Northern Michigan returns three players (Marco Volcy, Ricky Volcy and David Noel) that started all 28 games for last year's 13-15 Wildcat squad. Junior forward Ricky Volcy led the Wildcats in both scoring (19.8 ppg) and rebounding (7.7 rpg). NMU is led by head coach Dean Ellis, who has guided the program since 1986. The Wildcats played an exhibition contest at Michigan last night.
Lake Superior State Recap - Michigan State defeated Lake Superior State, 107-73, in its first exhibition game of the season on Monday. The Spartan trio of Maurice Ager, Shannon Brown and Paul Davis combined to score 61 points. Drew Neitzel added 16 points and seven assists as MSU recorded 26 assists on 37 baskets. Drew Naymick also earned the start for the Spartans, scoring eight points and grabbing a team-best 10 rebounds, as MSU out-rebounded the Lakers, 40-22. The Spartans displayed their high-powered offense, shooting 57.8 percent from the field, including 45.5 percent from 3-point range. In the first half, MSU scored 63 points, shooting 71.0 percent from the floor and 57.1 percent from behind the arc.
Izzo's Alma Mater - Tom Izzo received his bachelor's degree from Nothern Michigan in 1977. He played guard for the Wildcats from 1973-77, earning team MVP and third-team Division II All-America honors as a senior, establishing a school record for most minutes played in a season. In 1990, Izzo was inducted into the Northern Michigan University Hall of Fame. In 2001, he received an honorary doctorate degree and delivered the commencement address at the spring graduation ceremony.
Big Ten Favorites - Michigan State was named the Big Ten preseason favorite at the league's media day on Oct. 30 in Chicago. The Spartans are followed by Illinois and Indiana in the poll. Paul Davis also earned a spot on the Preseason All-Big Ten squad.
MSU Is A "Powerhouse Program" - ESPN named Michigan State one of the 10 "Powerhouse Programs" in college basketball. Of the 10 schools featured, only seven were division I men's programs. MSU was joined by Duke, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, UCLA, division II Kentucky Wesleyan, and the Tennessee and Connecticut women's programs. The television program featuring the list was part of ESPNU's Honor Roll series.
Four Final Fours In Seven Years - Michigan State is the only team to have appeared in four of the last seven Final Fours and just the eighth school in NCAA history to appear in four Final Fours in any seven-year period. The other schools are Cincinnati, Duke, Kentucky, Louisville, North Carolina, Oklahoma State and UCLA, Tom Izzo became just the sixth coach in NCAA history to lead a team to four Final Fours in a seven-year span, joining John Wooden, Dean Smith, Mike Krzyzewski, Denny Crum and Henry Iba.
Looking Ahead - Michigan State opens the regular season on Nov. 19 at Hawaii. The Spartans will then compete in the EA SPORTS Maui Invitational Nov. 21-23, where the eight-team field features four teams ranked in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll Top 25 (No. 2 Connecticut, No. 5 Michigan State, No. 7 Gonzaga and No. 9 Arizona).
MSU Is No. 1 - The Sporting News has tabbed Michigan State as its preseason No. 1 team, listing the Spartans' strengths as "two elite playmaking wings; size and skill at center; toughness." The publication also lists Maurice Ager as the No. 2 shooting guard in the nation and a second-team All-American. Paul Davis is the No. 4 center and Shannon Brown is ranked the No. 9 small forward. As a unit, the Spartan backcourt is ranked second in the nation.
A High Octane Offense - Michigan State led the Big Ten and ranked 13th nationally in scoring offense, averaging 78.5 points per game. It was MSU's highest scoring-offense since the 1985-86 Spartans averaged 83.1 points. The Spartans return three of their top four scorers and a starting point guard to help key the attack.
America's Best Backcourt - Lindy's College Basketball preseason magazine ranked Michigan State's backcourt the best in the nation: "The backcourt was solid enough to get the Spartans to the Final Four last season and that should be the case again in 2006. Shannon Brown and Maurice Ager will be the `wings' and either could be defined as a `shooting guard,' if you like to see players locked into position descriptions. They're both explosive enough to jump over the top or drive past any variety of defender. Drew Neitzel was solid the last half of the season as the team's playmaker and should be much improved as a sophomore."
Returning Talent - Michigan State lost three 1,000-point scorers from last year's squad, yet it returns four starters from the Final Four starting lineup, including 83 percent of its scoring and 76 percent of its rebounds from the National Semifinal game against North Carolina. Paul Davis was the NCAA Tournament's leading rebounder, averaging 11.6 boards per game. Shannon Brown was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Austin Regional, scoring a career-high 24 points against Kentucky. Maurice Ager was MSU's leading scorer during the regular season (14.1 ppg) and the NCAA Tournament (18.2 ppg) and scored a career-high tying 24 points against the Tar Heels. Drew Neitzel took over the starting duties in February and increased his productivity in the NCAA Tournament, raising his scoring average from 3.3 ppg in the regular season to 5.0 ppg in the tournament.
MSU On TV - Michigan State is also slated to appear on television at least 30 times, including up to 17 times on national television (4 CBS, 7 ESPN, 3 ESPN2, 1 ESPNU and 2 appearances that will either be on ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU).
Mr. Double-Double - Paul Davis elevated his level of play over the last two months of the season, recording a double-double in eight of the final 15 games, including the last four NCAA Tournament contests. His best effort might have come in the Sweet 16 when he out-scored (20 to 19) and out-rebounded (12 to 8) Duke's Shelden Williams. In the Final Four, against North Carolina's Sean May, Davis recorded a career-best 15 rebounds.
Another Tough Schedule - The Spartan schedule includes 10 teams that appeared in the 2005 NCAA Tournament, including six non-league opponents (Arizona, Boston College, Connecticut, Georgia Tech, Gonzaga and Kansas) and four league foes (Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin).
Izzo's Busy Summer - In addition to the always-busy summer recruiting season, Coach Tom Izzo enjoyed a few unique opportunities. In July, he had the opportunity to play golf with Tiger Woods at the Buick Open Pro-Am, prompting Woods to say "he's a guy that if I was playing ball, he's the type of guy that I'd want to go play for.' In mid-August, Izzo was one of a select number of coaches at Michael Jordan's Senior Flight School. The summer closed with Izzo traveling to Kuwait to take part in "Operation Hardwood - Hoops With The Troops." Izzo was one of eight coaches and sports personalities coaching 13-member military basketball teams on Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, from Aug. 27-31. Camp Arifjan defeated the other bases to win the championship under the direction of Coach Izzo.
