Tom Izzo
Tom Izzo
Thomas Michael Izzois an American college basketball coach. Since 1995, he has been the head coach for the Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team, presiding over a prolonged period of success. On April 4, 2016, Izzo was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame...
ProfessionCoach
Date of Birth30 January 1955
CityIron Mountain, MI
anybody coached struggled wants win
Maurice has struggled lately. And (yet) I don't think there's anybody I've ever coached who wants to win more than he does.
affect certain coaches eventually fired hired huge minus ncaa plus rule teams
It will never even out because you never know which years certain teams are good, and that's nobody's fault, not the Big Ten, not the coaches, not anyone. But when coaches are hired and fired on it, and when eventually you're going to be seeded in the NCAA Tournament, a real huge plus or a rule huge minus can affect a lot of teams.
changed complexion foul key leads losses maybe michigan playing serious trouble
In our losses to Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin, we've had serious foul trouble at key times. Maybe we've had leads or were playing good, but it changed the complexion of the game.
beat few ohio playing schedule somewhat team ten
They're playing for a Big Ten championship. They haven't done that for a few years now, and they're playing a team that beat them handily. The schedule is somewhat in their favor, somewhat in Ohio State's favor.
broke hit jaw matt pain worried
Sometimes there's only so much you can do. I think Matt would play if it was just the pain. They're worried that if your jaw is broke and you get hit again, what can happen.
few maybe mentally recent
I don't know why we haven't been consistent. I've said a few times that maybe we're not as tough, mentally or physically, as we have been in recent years.
great job tough
I think he's done a great job in a tough situation.
great run shot
I still think they have a great shot to make a long run in the tournament.
beat great illinois three worried
Illinois is not going to be worried because they beat us two times or three times. They're not going to have a letdown. They've got a great team.
allowed cost crying dispute sitting totally
Don't read into it that I'm sitting here crying about the officiating. I didn't like the way it was called. But I'm allowed to dispute that without getting personal. It's not what totally cost us the game, but we were very much out of sync.
ability bringing concerned crowd good job might raise throw
He has that ability to raise a crowd off its feet. He's done a good job for them bringing that alone. ... You always have to be a little more concerned about a lob they might throw into the rafters that he can go get. That makes it more difficult.
anybody average basketball beat good margin mean run
This is a good basketball team, and when I say good, I don't mean just average good, I mean good enough to beat anybody in this league, good enough to make any run that we can make. But there's not a lot of margin for error.
great guard
He shouldn't be called a great guard or a great shooter. He should just be called a winner.
athletic hard kid labeled shake soft start whether
Sometimes I see things he can do, and I do shake my head. He's very, very athletic for a big kid and he's a very intelligent player. But when you start your career, you can get labeled, whether you're labeled soft or whatever. I've been hard on him, but in the big games, he has shined.