Finals Week

12.14.2009

It's hard to believe that it is already the middle of December and we've played 10 games. The season has flown by and has brought us ups and downs along the way, but we're heading in the right direction.

After our win over Oakland, we were awarded the day off on Friday and were back to work Saturday morning. Coach Izzo sat us down before practice and once again discussed how "we win weekends at Michigan State". And with a week break before our next game vs. IPFW and then a short prep time before our game at Texas, we are going to prepare like we would in the NCAA tournament and plan to "win the weekend". After Coach's talk we went out and had one of our best practices of the year.

For the next week we'll have to balance practicing and film sessions with studying for and taking finals. Another busy week ahead, but we're ready for it. See you Saturday when we play IPFW at noon at Breslin.

Another weekend full of work for us.

12.07.2009

On Friday we played a tough team in Wofford and came away with a victory. The Wofford game was especially fun for Zeke (Isaiah Dahlman) who started for the first time in his MSU career and played against his younger brother Noah.

With tons of Dahlman family and friends in the stands, the brothers did not disappoint as Noah scored 19 points and Zeke had a reverse lay-up that brought the entire crowd out of their seats.

Despite the win, we weren?t convinced we played as good as we?re capable of. We came in for practice on Saturday afternoon and made sure we played hard. It was nice to get a little break Saturday night, but we are back to work today. After practice we are loading up and heading down to South Carolina to play The Citadel tomorrow night. After that, we welcome in our neighbors to the south when we play Oakland University on Thursday. See you then!

Go Green!

Legendary...

11.24.2009

What a weekend! After our two wins over Toledo on Friday and Valparaiso on Sunday, Coach Izzo tied Jud Heathcote for most wins in Michigan State history. Immediately after the game on Sunday, Coach Izzo hopped on a plane to Kansas City to support Heathcote and Magic Johnson as they were inducted into the college basketball hall of fame.

We took the day off Monday to recover from the hectic weekend, but today we will start to prepare for the second half of the Legends Classic. We’re all excited to go on our first road trip of the year this weekend to Atlantic City.

Make sure you keep sending your questions for players and staff as next week we plan to roll out our first Mailbag of the year. Email msuhoops@ath.msu.edu with the subject line of "Ask the Spartans" and check back soon to see if your question was chosen!

Off to the races...

11.16.2009

One down, plenty to go. It was nice to get off to a good start with a convincing win over Florida Gulf Coast last Friday. Everyone saw some action and the highlight of the night had to be Kalin Lucas’ no-look, and-one finish in the second half.

We enjoyed the win a little that night, but once Saturday came, we were focused on our next opponent, Gonzaga. The game will be played tomorrow night (Nov. 17) as part of ESPN’s college basketball Tip-Off Marathon. Our game is on ESPN at 8 p.m. and we are all pumped to play in front of a national audience.

We’re hoping that the improvements to the Breslin Center atmosphere can take our home-court advantage to the next level. So get there early, get rowdy with the Izzone, sing the national anthem with pride, and be loud early and often!

We’re working hard to bring our A game against the Zags and we’re hoping YOU as fans bring yours too.

GO GREEN!

The season begins tonight...

11.13.2009

After an off-season spent in the gym, a sold out Midnight Madness, 20 preseason practices and two exhibition wins, the 2009-10 Spartan basketball season begins tonight.

We are all excited to get the season underway and defend our Big Ten title, with the ultimate goal of making a trip to Indianapolis.

Because of our celebrated run to the Final Four last year, we are not flying under anyone’s radar. Those high expectations have created a media buzz here in East Lansing. We’ve had visits from Jeff Goodman of FoxSports.com, Andy Katz of ESPN.com and HBO’s Real Sports just to name a few.

Despite the national exposure and preseason accolades, we still have not forgotten how we succeeded last year, through hard work and persistence.

The long journey starts tonight as we play Florida Gulf Coast at 7 pm at the Breslin Center. The FGCU Eagles are a very athletic team who will come ready to play with a major upset in their minds.

Keeping our ultimate goals in mind, we must remember the old cliché of playing one game at a time and GO TO WORK.

-As we get into the season, we will be unveiling several new features of the blog, one being “Ask the Spartans”. Start submitting your questions for any player, coach or staff member to msuhoops@ath.msu.edu with the subject line of "Ask the Spartans" and check back soon to see if your question was chosen!

Welcome to the new CoachIzzo.com blog!

11.10.2009

As the 2009-2010 season begins, our new blog is designed to grant you inside access to one of the premier college basketball programs in the nation. Check back soon for videos, pictures and first hand accounts from players, coaches and staff members as they prepare for another season.