Focus is on the coaches as Terps face Spartans
The most intriguing coaching matchup in the NCAA round of 32 is between Michigan State’s Tom Izzo and Maryland’s Gary Williams. Both have captured national championships. Both are the winningest coaches at their respective schools. Both are destined for the Hall of Fame.
But when they meet Sunday at Spokane Memorial Arena for a spot in the Sweet 16, that’s where the similarities end.
While Izzo has struggled to connect with his fifth-seeded Spartans (25-8), Williams has had no problems reaching his fourth-seeded Terrapins (24-8). Sunday’s match-up will be between a Michigan State team still searching for its identity and a Maryland team fully aware of its own.
Michigan State’s 70-67 victory Friday night over No. 12 New Mexico State was a step in the right direction. Junior Kalin Lucas (25 points) carried the Spartans, who led most of the way as Izzo improved to 32-11 in the tournament.
“We’re going to move forward,” said Izzo. “We’re going to try to maintain that togetherness that I’ve been searching for all year.”
Entering the season with five of the top six scorers back from a team that played in the NCAA championship game, Michigan State was ranked No. 2. But after winning its first nine Big Ten games, the Spartans lost five of their next 10.
The tailspin coincided with an ankle injury to top scorer Lucas (15.2 points per game, 3.9 apg). While the point guard has recovered, the team has not.
Much was expected of 6-8 sophomore Delvon Roe (6.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg). But playing on a damaged knee that will require surgery after the season, Roe has been increasingly ineffective.
An overtime loss to Minnesota in the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament illustrated the Spartans’ troubles. Junior guard Chris Allen (8.8 ppg) was suspended, while his mate on the opposite wing, junior Durrell Summers (10.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg), was benched in the second half for walk-on Mike Kebler, who played 48 minutes in the regular season.
Both were back in the starting lineup Friday against New Mexico State. Summers (14 points) rebounded somewhat, but Allen tweaked an ankle and didn’t return after failing to score from the floor in 26 minutes. The duo combined to hit just 5-of-18 shots. But Izzo accentuated the positive.
“In some ways I saw my team grow up in front of my eyes,” said Izzo. “Are we going to maintain that? Only time will tell.”
By contrast, the Maryland team Michigan State faces Sunday has few chemistry issues. The Terps weren’t at their best in an 89-77 win Friday over Houston. They hit just 4-of-17 shots from 3-point range. But they were poised and in control as they exploited their advantage inside, outrebounding the Cougars 47-26.
Freshman Jordan Williams notched career highs in points (21) and rebounds (17), while Landon Milbourne (19 points, 7 rebounds), Greivis Vasquez (16 points, 7 rebounds), and even reserve Cliff Tucker, who had 7 rebounds in 10 minutes, attacked the boards.
“We understood that there were points to be scored on the offensive glass,” said Gary Williams. “Landon, Jordan, Dino Gregory and a couple of the other guys stepped up and gave us some of that.”
On Sunday, Maryland will have a tougher task inside with MSU’s physical trio of 6-8, 230-pound senior Raymar Morgan (11.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg), 6-6, 235 sophomore Draymond Green (9.8 ppg, 8.1 rpg), and 6-8, 280 freshman Derrick Nix (2.3 ppg, 2.2 rpg), who starts but rarely plays more than 12 minutes.
But the most important matchup, and the most intriguing, will be the one between the coaches.
“I’m older than Tom, unfortunately, that’s one difference,” joked Williams Friday night after winning his 10th straight NCAA opener. “Tom’s teams always play. It doesn’t matter who the players are, they always come after you, they execute very well. And you have to match their intensity and passion for the game.”
Izzo, who has been to the Sweet 16 eight of the last 12 seasons, looks to his pedigree and hopes Friday’s success wasn’t a mirage.
“In huddles it was great,” said Izzo. “Guys were like, I want to win, I want to win, I want to win. And that’s like I said, we grew up a little bit today.”
