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Tom Izzo discusses Michigan State’s loss in B1G semis: ‘This team has performed way above where they are’

Sydney Hunte

By Sydney Hunte

Published:

Tom Izzo and Michigan State entered Saturday’s Big Ten semifinal on an 8-game winning streak, but saw that halted by a 77-74 loss to Wisconsin in Indianapolis.

The Spartans led by as much as 8 in the first half before the Badgers went on to take a 37-33 lead into the locker room. After a back-and-forth second half and a miss Wisconsin free throw with 6 seconds to go, the Spartans trailed 77-74 before Jeremy Fears Jr. appeared to draw a foul on a last-second long-range 3-pointer that wasn’t called.

Izzo, after the game, felt his team should have done better overall despite the controversy.

“We lost the game before that,” he said.

The Spartans, who lost 3 of 4 to start the month of February, hadn’t lost since a 71-67 defeat against Indiana on Feb. 11.

Now, priority No. 1 for Izzo is working to get the most out of his group as they look to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament. Their late-season surge has them projected as a 2 seed by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.

“Trust me when I say I look in the mirror and figure out ‘What do I gotta do better?’ I’m gonna do some things,” Izzo said. “I think this team has performed way above where they are, and yet I think there’s a ceiling yet to get to, and that’s going to be my job in the next five days.”

Sydney Hunte