Tom Izzo had harsh words for his team after sloppy win over San Jose State

Tom Izzo didn’t mince words after Michigan State’s 79-60 win over San Jose State on Thursday night.

Although the Spartans’ win was never in doubt, they looked like they were just going through the motions to begin the second half. They dominated and had their best half of the season in the first 20 minutes against San Jose State, building a 23-point lead, but that lead melted away in the second half.

While failing to maintain a large lead happens to teams every now and then because they’re guilty of taking their foot off the gas, but surrendering an 8-0 run to begin the second half was a bad sign.

Izzo was not pleased.

I had a feeling it was going to be an all-timer of a post-game presser, but I wasn’t quite expecting him to tear into his team like he did. He didn’t hold back nor did he mince words, dropping his first “fat and sassy” quote of the season regarding his veteran leaders.

That wasn’t the only fantastic quote from Izzo in the presser. He was clearly agitated by the second-half effort from his guys after a fantastic first half.

Reporters asked him how he’s going to handle the team in the locker room after this effort, and he said that he’s not going easy on them. He’s not the type of coach who’s going to coddle his guys.

Oh, you think that was it? Nope, he kept going. He dropped a “we’re gonna get killed” line ahead of Tuesday’s Champions Classic against Kentucky. He said the same thing before the Arkansas game after a sloppy opener against Colgate.

I mean, he’s not wrong. If the Spartans play like they did in the first half against Kentucky, they’ll be just fine. If we see the second-half Spartans against Kentucky, it’ll get ugly. He knows that.

Was that it? Nope, he wasn’t done.

Izzo told reporters that he has to “be softer in public” but that he’s not going to be soft in the morning at practice. He hinted at a rough practice after Thursday’s performance.

It’s safe to say that we’re going to see a much more focused team on Tuesday night.