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Tom Izzo Impresses Fans with March Madness Mastery as Michigan St. Tops Miss. St.

Mike Chiari@@mikechiariX.com LogoFeatured Columnist IVMarch 21, 2024

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 21: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts against the Mississippi State Bulldogs during the first half in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 21, 2024 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images

Veteran head coach Tom Izzo improved his sterling March Madness Round of 64 record Thursday, as his ninth-seeded Michigan State Spartans beat the No. 9 Mississippi State Bulldogs 69-51 in a first-round matchup in the West Region of the 2024 NCAA men's basketball tournament.

Michigan State is playing in its 26th consecutive NCAA tourney under Izzo, and it is now 20-5 in Round of 64 games during that stretch. Izzo also boasts a career record of 56-24 in the NCAA tournament overall.

It wasn't a banner year for the Spartans, as they went 19-14, finished tied for sixth in the Big Ten and lost in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament, but Izzo had his team ready to play Thursday just as he almost always does come tournament time.

Given the success Izzo-led Michigan State teams have had in March over the years, many fans on X lamented the fact that they bet against the Spartans or picked against them in their bracket pools:

John Fanta @John_Fanta

We all should have known Tom Izzo wasn't going to be the first to get eliminated from the NCAA Tournament...

Joe Tansey @JTansey90

"Should've known not to bet against Izzo"<br><br>- everyone who bet Mississippi State 10 minutes into the game.

Basketball Benny @bballbenny2021

Me betting against Izzo in every parlay I have <a href="https://t.co/CLg3anKQTi">pic.twitter.com/CLg3anKQTi</a>

Nick Perkins @NickyPerkss

Yall crazy for actually picking Mississippi State over a Tom Izzo led Michigan State team

Sean Murphy @seanhalfcourt

What's the mark of a great coach?<br><br>How about despite their continual struggles in the regular season, Tom Izzo always seemingly has his team ready for March. And they're somehow always playing their best basketball when it matters most.<br><br>THATS a great coach.

Texas Longhorn Fan Battle Podcast @LHFanBattle

Tom Izzo teams ALWAYS show up for this damn tournament πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚πŸ˜‚

Ellis Gordon @EllisVGordon

It's early but all I can think about right now is why did I pick against Tom Izzo in the first round again

Terrence Oglesby @T_Oglesby22

Feel dumb for going against Izzo…<br><br>Some things you guess at, other things you just know

Purdue Supremacy @PurdueSupremacy

This Mississippi State team is no scrubs, Michigan State looking like Izzo pulled some March Magic again.

CYSOX @IowaSox

First rule of creating a bracket:<br><br>Do not pick against Tom Izzo. He finds ways to win in March. <a href="https://t.co/O70CNtHOhD">pic.twitter.com/O70CNtHOhD</a>

Michigan State was highly efficient on the offensive end Thursday, shooting 50 percent from the field and 43.5 percent from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Spartans held the Bulldogs to 37 percent shooting the from the floor and 22.2 percent shooting from long range.

Three players scored in double figures for Michigan State, but it was senior guard Tyson Walker who led the way with a team-high 19 points, plus three rebounds, three steals and two assists.

Team-wide production was somewhat lacking for Mississippi State offensively, as freshman guard and leading scorer Josh Hubbard did most of the work on that end, recording 15 points, three boards and two assists as the Bulldogs' only double-digit scorer.

As good as Hubbard was on Thursday, he was on the wrong end of the highlight reel, as Spartans guard Jaden Akins rejected him with an emphatic block on a layup attempt:

CBS Sports College Basketball πŸ€ @CBSSportsCBB

"OH AND HE IS DENIED. JADEN AKINS."<a href="https://twitter.com/MSU_Basketball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MSU_Basketball</a> with the rejection 🚫 <a href="https://t.co/zqBRDTz9kI">pic.twitter.com/zqBRDTz9kI</a>

Had Hubbard made that basket early in the second quarter, it would have cut the deficit to four and potentially given the Bulldogs some much-needed momentum.

Instead, the pendulum swung fully in favor of the Spartans, and they rattled off the next eight points to push the lead into double digits.

Mississippi State never really threatened Michigan State for the remainder of the game, thus continuing the program's recent history of the NCAA tournament futility.

Despite reaching the tourney four times since then, the Bulldogs have not won an NCAA tournament game since the 2007-08 season.

As for the Spartans, they are into the Round of 32 for the third year in a row and the sixth time in the past seven tournaments.

They will move on to face either No. 1 North Carolina or No. 16 Wagner in the second round this weekend.

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