Michigan State Spartans at Breslin Center
East Lansing, Michigan, is home to one of the premiere basketball programs in the Big Ten Conference. The Michigan State Spartans play at the Breslin Student Events Center, which opened in 1989 and seats 15,000. They are coached by Tom Izzo, a former assistant at MSU who replaced Jud Heathcote upon his retirement in 1995. The Spartans have won the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament twice, in 1979 and 2000, were finalists in 2009 and have been to the Final Four 10 times, most recently in 2019.
Michigan State Spartans Men's Basketball History
Michigan Agricultural College first fielded a men's basketball team in 1898, less than a decade after the sport's invention. By 1957, the school, now known as Michigan State University, won its first Big Ten title and made its first appearance in the Final Four, under coach Forrest "Forddy" Anderson. Michigan State won its first national championship under Jud Heathcote in 1979, in what remains the highest-rated college basketball telecast of all time. Earvin "Magic" Johnson helped lead the Spartans to a 75-64 victory in Salt Lake City against Larry Bird and the Indiana State Sycamores, beginning the legendary decade-long rivalry between the two. In 2000, Mateen Cleaves led the Spartans under Izzo to their second title, defeating the Florida Gators 89-76 in Indianapolis.
Under Tom Izzo, Michigan State has reached new heights in the Big Ten and in college basketball. The 2018-19 season was especially momentous for the Spartans, with Michigan State winning their sixth conference tournament championship and 15th regular-season conference championship. Coach Izzo won his 600th game on March 15, 2019, defeating Ohio State 77-70 in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals. Michigan State then went on to reach the Final Four by defeating Bradley, Minnesota, LSU and Duke. Texas Tech upset Michigan State in the national semifinals, 61-51, but the Spartans are poised to be a team to watch out for in the years to come.
