Terry Foster: The Spartans Were Fat And Sassy In NCAA Tournament Loss
By Terry Foster
@TerryFoster971
Las Vegas -- The room grew silent in the 12th floor ballroom of the D Casino Las Vegas.
Michigan State lost and the room was in shock. Of course there were a bunch of Spartans with their mouths agape after Middle Tennessee State stunned the Spartans 90-81 in the opening round of the NCAA tournament.
But this room was also filled with Hurricanes, Shockers and Hawkeyes. They do not have a fight in this battle and they were all in a state of shock.
By the numbers this was the fourth most shocking loss in NCAA tournament history. When you throw in the name Michigan State it is the biggest upset in tournament history. The loss was compounded when MTSU was steamrolled by Syracuse 75-50 during a second half barrage that left the underdogs overwhelmed.
Now the spot that belonged to Michigan State is occupied by No. 10 Syracuse and No. 11 Gonzaga.
It is a loss that will stick with coach Tom Izzo for the rest of his life and it is something that will grind him so much, that he will make sure it never happens again. The Spartans got fat and sassy. You could see it during Middle Tennessee's opening 15-2 run and you could see it in the Big Ten tournament when the Spartans lost focus in games against Maryland and Purdue even tough they managed to win.
Senior Denzel Valentine did a bold and courageous thing when he guaranteed that the Spartans would win this tournament. I have no problem with him saying it. The problem is it seemed as if opponents upped their games against MSU and the Spartans tried to coast.
That never works.
What Valentine failed to do is tell teammates he put his neck on the line for them because he believes in them. Now everybody needs to step up.
You saw Matt Costello miss bunnies and a key free throw. You saw Deyonta Davis get burned on the defensive end and Bryn Forbes never consistently got his three-point shot back.
And here is an aside. I keep hearing how Davis is an NBA player. He is not. The young man has potential but there are a bunch of guys who have potential that never make it. Davis needs to return and become a more focused and dependable player. He does not look like a first-round pick to me. And until that happens he must stay in East Lansing.
He wasn't even the best big man on the Spartans. How is he going to survive in the NBA?
