Saturday was a special night for Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo as he led the Spartans past Illinois for the second time this season, securing Big Ten win No. 354, passing Bob Knight for the all-time conference record.
It was fitting that his most impressive win of the season broke the record and it followed his worst loss of the year, a home defeat against a mediocre Indiana team.
Illinois was confident heading into the game and Michigan State fans were not expecting much, especially after losing to Indiana and three of the previous four games to drop to 10-3 in the conference and 19-5 overall. A lot of fans were expecting another loss, especially after falling behind by 16 in the first half, but the second half was all MSU.
Adjustments were made at the half and Michigan State dominated down the stretch thanks to a masterful coaching performance by Izzo.
Following the win, he was clearly emotional and Michigan State men's basketball posted a heartwarming video on X dedicated to Izzo and his 354th win. It was a compilation of different coaches and personalities all congratulating him on breaking the record.
Pretty cool video.
SECOND TO NONE. pic.twitter.com/nRNoDV4Nme
— Michigan State Men's Basketball (@MSU_Basketball) February 16, 2025
It starts with Mark Dantonio and also features legends like John Calipari, Bo Ryan, Bruce Pearl, Gene Keady, Jay Wright, Matt Painter, Phil Knight, Jim Nantz, John Beilein, Mike Krzyzewski, and Roy Williams. Also shown are Tim Miles (formerly Nebraska's head coach), Tom Crean, Bill Raftery, Mike Garland, Greg Kampe, Jim Delany, Tony Petitti, Rick Barnes, Dave Revsine, Bruce Weber, and Brian Gregory.
This was a really cool tribute video for the Hall of Fame head coach who still somehow continues to add to his list of accomplishments.