Michigan State Basketball: 5 takeaways from 2019 Big Ten tourney title win

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - MARCH 17: Matt McQuaid #20 and Kenny Goins #25 of the Michigan State Spartans pose for photos after beating the Michigan Wolverines 65-60 in the the championship game of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at the United Center on March 17, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – MARCH 17: Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans addresses the crowd after beating the Michigan Wolverines 65-60 in the championship game of the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at the United Center on March 17, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

2. Tom Izzo had yet another coaching gem

How do you beat a team like Michigan? You can out-play them, sure, but they always seem to counter with high IQ basketball and that’s a credit to how great of a coach John Beilein has been in Ann Arbor.

The Wolverines have been known to out-smart teams and they did so a season ago versus Michigan State, once in the regular season and once in the Big Ten Tournament semifinal. Not the case this season, though.

Tom Izzo put together his third straight coaching gem against the Wolverines, silencing all that ridiculous “Beilein owns Izzo” talk after a three-game Michigan winning streak. He made the necessary adjustments at halftime yet again, downing the Wolverines thanks to strategic game plans, such as sitting Nick Ward versus Isaiah Livers.

It’s not often you see a guy like Beilein out-coached three times in a single season, let alone by the same person.

That’s why Izzo is a Hall of Famer.

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