Michigan State Basketball: Rocket Watts Emotional in Win Over Michigan

Michigan State didn't have a traditional senior day, but one Spartan became emotional in Sunday's win.

EAST LANSING – Michigan State had an understated senior day with Joshua Langford being the lone senior and having had his moment last year. 

However, a day usually filled with emotions still found a way to elicit tears after a hard-fought victory. 

Rocket Watts checked into the game against Michigan Sunday afternoon and immediately looked up to find his mom in the biggest crowd the Breslin Center had all season.

The Detroit native participated in 53 collegiate contests, but his mother had never seen him play in person.

Following a 70-64 win over U-M, Tom Izzo raved about Watts, who scored 21 points on 16 attempts and led MSU throughout.

The 66-year old described his combo guard as "a little hardcore inside," but when the final horn sounded, Izzo finally understood what was going on in Watts' world.

"I'm a teacher; that's my job. Some of the times, it's not easy," said Izzo. "It's not easy at all. But when a guy responds ... and he's got tears in his eyes because his mom, I said 'Wow.' I gave him a hug, and I said, 'Boy, it's just fun to learn the different sides of different people.'"

Watts elaborated, saying his mom hadn't been present for MSU games because she's not a huge sports fan but added she offers her support by calling her son after every game.

On a day where Michigan State desperately needed someone to step up outside of Aaron Henry, his mother energized him.

"It felt real good seeing my mom in the stands and me looking her in her eyes when I was on the court and seeing tears coming down her eyes," Watts said. "That meant a lot to me, just seeing everybody in the stands cheering ... the game was going well."

Aside from performances against Duke, Detroit Mercy, and Michigan, the 6-foot-2 sophomore experienced a down year but realizes how important he is to Michigan State's success.

"I feel like this team's good without me scoring, but when I do score, it just brings a little grit to the team ... I just want to say I'm very thankful for those guys, my teammates, and the whole coaching staff, for just being with me through the ups and downs," said Watts.

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