5 Most Interesting Things Tom Izzo Said After MSU's Loss At Indiana
Michigan State men's basketball fell to Indiana on Sunday afternoon, 82-69, to drop to 13-7 overall and 5-4 in Big Ten play.
Following the defeat, Spartans head coach Tom Izzo met with the media to discuss the outcome. Here are the five most interesting things Izzo had to say.
1.) “We still have no substitution pattern…We’ve got no continuity in our substitution.”
This admission from Izzo jumped out immediately, and I think it speaks to the single, biggest reason why Michigan State has struggled this season.
When the Spartans have been at full strength with both Malik Hall and Jaden Akins available, they are 7-2 this season, and that includes the 75-66 loss to Illinois in which Hall left with about seven minutes left in the game.
Akins missed four games earlier this season when he re-aggravated his surgically-repaired foot. Hall, meanwhile, has been sidelined for 11 games and Michigan State is 6-5 in those games.
At this point in the season, most teams are settling into their rotations and role assignments, but the Spartans are still searching for answers without one of their top six players available. Michigan State entered the 2022-23 season with a lack of depth, particularly at forward, and they've been hit by injury at arguably the worst possible position.
2.) “[Malik Hall is] a little ways away yet. When? I have no idea. All I can do is support him, and I think some of those [things] are physical, some of them are mental, some of them are complications and some of them are the world right now is different. If you get injured, you’re different. So, I don’t know if he’s injured or hurt. If he’s injured, he’s got to do what he’s got to do. If he’s hurt, then you don’t play.”
This was a confusing statement from Izzo about Hall, and it comes across like the head coach is frustrated with his senior forward. That's not necessarily the case — Izzo might just be frustrated by the circumstance of not having Hall available, or be frustrated by having to answer questions about Hall.
The fact that Izzo said, "I don't know if he's injured or hurt" definitely stands out, because you would think the head coach would know the difference and be privy to the information that Hall has been given by medical experts. Also — "If he's injured, he's got to do what he's got to do. If he's hurt, then you don't play" — doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me either.
Usually, when a coach says a player is "injured", that means that the player is physically unable to play. When a player is "hurt", it becomes a decision between coach and player to either play through pain or sit until the pain subsides enough to allow the player to play.
The way Izzo answered the question about Hall's injury leaves a lot up to interpretation.
3.) “Tyson Walker got sick two nights ago, and didn’t practice or eat. This morning, we didn’t even think he was going to play at breakfast. And so, I give him a lot of credit, but he hadn’t shot a ball, he hadn’t touched a ball. His stomach virus…it got a little better but they put [an IV] in his veins last night and today...He played as hard as he could play under the circumstances.”
I don't have a whole lot to add here, but thought it important to share what Izzo had to say about Tyson Walker after the game.
The CBS broadcast informed audiences just moments ahead of tipoff between the Spartans and Hoosiers that Walker had been dealing with a non-COVID related illness. Despite that, Walker played 33 minutes and finished with eight points on 4-of-7 shooting, and added four steals, two assists and two rebounds.
Izzo said that he apologized to Walker three times during the game for playing him so many minutes, but said Michigan State had no one else to turn to.
4.) “Pierre had some good looks, he just didn’t make them...We understand that Pierre is going to be limited defensively a little bit, but you hope he can make shots and he’s not making shots. If he’s not doing that, it’s tough. But, he played harder today so there are some things that are encouraging.”
The 2022-23 season has been a trial by fire for sophomore guard Pierre Brooks, who has been asked to play an increased role in the absence of Hall.
On Sunday, Brook hadd arguably his worst game offensively as a Spartan, going 0-for-5 from the floor and 0-for-3 from three-point range. Michigan State was outscored by 15 points with Brooks on the floor, which was a team-worst in terms of plus-minus.
Last week, following the Rutgers game, Izzo said that he thought Brooks had the ability to be a good player at MSU and that he wasn't giving up on the sophomore. That's the correct approach for the Spartans' head coach, but it's pretty evident at the moment that Brooks is not ready for the role that has been thrust upon him this season.
5.) “I just never know how it’s going to be called. One minute grabbing and holding is called, one minute you can’t touch somebody, one minute you can hand-check. I think the consistency is not good."
Izzo has publicized some frustration concerning Big Ten officiating on a few occasions this season, and did so again after the Indiana game.
To his credit, Izzo walks the line between complaining about officials in post-game press conferences while simultaneously giving all the credit to Michigan State's opponents when the Spartans get beat. Blaming losses on officials is not a good look for anybody, and I haven't heard Izzo do that since I've been on this beat.
With that being said, I totally understand Izzo's frustration here. As someone who has watched Big Ten basketball for much of the last 20 years, 12 of which as an adult, I can confirm that the inconsistency in how games are called is striking. It's one thing if different Big Ten crews call games differently, that is somewhat expected. But when the way a game is called changes in the midst of the game, there's no greater frustration for a coach.
