It’s been 26 years since Tom Izzo led the Spartans to the National Championship, and after another Sweet 16 exit on Friday night at the hands of Dan Hurley’s UConn Huskies, it doesn’t appear as though the 71-year-old will ever do it again.
Izzo last made a Final Four in 2019, on the cusp of the NIL era, and while Izzo has largely refused to adapt to the new age of college basketball, still building his program through four-year developmental projects and hardly dipping into the Transfer Portal, that’s not the reason he hasn’t gone back. Izzo’s doing it the old school way, and that doesn’t need to change to win it all, but the style of Izzo’s teams does.
Michigan State needs more shot-makers in March
A Tom Izzo team will look the same, almost no matter the year. Without fail, the Spartans will play physical defense, rebound well, and push the pace in transition. More often than not, he’ll have a wily point guard who is tough as nails and can seemingly always get his team a good shot. Far too often, though, that point guard is counted on to get every good shot, and even with one of the best in the country, that will always have a ceiling.
Jeremy Fears Jr. emerged as one of the best passers in the country, leading the nation in assists, and continued to improve as a shooter. With Jase Richardson in the NBA, Fears became the primary initiator and the leading scorer.
For much of the season, that type of heliocentirc approach can work, especially with Coen Carr’s transition brilliance and Jaxon Kohler’s post play and three-point shooting. In the NCAA Tournament, however, when opposing coaching staffs can develop a bespoke game plan to shut down Fears, the flaws become impossible to ignore.
In the tournament, Fears shot 10-34 from the field. Maybe that’s just a shooting slump, but more likely its a product of the massive playmaking burden on his shoulders and the immense amount of attention paid to him defensively. Against Louisville, Coen Carr flashed the shot-making ability Spartans fans have long dreamt of him adding to his game, leading the way with 21 points, but that was never sustainable, and he regressed from 8-13 in that one to 5-9 and 0-3 from three for 13 points.
In the tournament, you need multiple answers. Often, that means multiple players who can get their own shot off the bounce and help the offense tread water when it inevitably bogs down. Michigan State didn’t have that this season, and hasn’t far too often in recent years. That was clear in a win over Louisville, it was clear as UConn pulled out to an early lead on Friday night, and it couldn't have been clearer when Fears was helplessly dribbling 20 seconds off the clock on the Spartans' final possession before Kur Teng finally launched an ill-fated three.
Izzo has succeeded without multiple shot creators, but if he wants to win it all again before it’s all said and done, he’ll need to embrace a major offensive shift.