Penn State's Mike Rhoades Earns Strong Recommendation From Tom Izzo

The Michigan State coach offered high praise for the Nittany Lions and Rhoades after a 76-72 Big Ten win.

Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Mike Rhoades reacts from the bench during the first half against the Michigan State Spartans at Bryce Jordan Center. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo left Penn State on Saturday with a grueling Big Ten win and some advice for the Nittany Lions: Stick with coach Mike Rhoades and his young roster.

"This team is going to beat some people," Izzo said after the Spartans' 76-72 win at the Bryce Jordan Center. "This team is going to have some ups and downs, because that's what young teams do. But boy, if you can hold this team together, I think this team has got a chance.

"... I was impressed, and I'm not just saying that to make everybody feel better."

Penn State (8-2) led ninth-ranked Michigan State by three points with 5 minutes remaining, but the Spartans' Divine Ugochukwu hit a pair of 3-pointers to guide a 12-5 finishing run. Penn State's Freddie Dilione V, who scored a career-high 23 points, cut Michigan State's lead to three points with 9 seconds remaining, but the Nittany Lions couldn't pull off the magical finish.

Still, in a game with six lead changes, including Penn State up by nine in the first half, Izzo saw glimpses of a team that could make some Big Ten waves. The Michigan State coach spent a good part of his post-game press conference at the Bryce Jordan Center praising the Nittany Lions and Rhoades.

"I almost want to apologize to them," Izzo told reporters in State College. "I thought they outplayed us most of the way, and we found a way to win. And if [Rhoades] can keep this team together with those young kids he's got, this is going to be a good team this year and a really good team in the future."

Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo talks with guard Jeremy Fears Jr. (1) and guard Kur Teng (2) during the second half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Bryce Jordan Center. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

Penn State entered its first Big Ten home game following a 51-point loss at Indiana that Rhoades called "embarrassing." But in scouting Penn State, Izzo and his staff watched the game vs. the Hoosiers. They saw a team that shot 69 percent from the field and 55 percent from 3-point range.

They also saw Indiana's Lamar Wilkerson score 44 points and set a program record for 3-pointers (10-for-15). To Izzo, Rhoades' work in getting Penn State ready to play Saturday was impressive.

"The mark of a great coach to me, and I've been through it many times, [is] to get a team off the floor," Izzo said. "They weren't on the floor. They were in a cave. They got beat. They got embarrassed. I told my guys, 'If God played Indiana that night, they would have won.'"

Penn State freshman guard Kayden Mingo played an exceptional game against the Spartans, finishing with 11 points and career-highs in assists (eight) and rebounds (seven). Penn State forced Michigan State into 17 turnovers and scored 23 points from them. Ultimately, going 8-for-29 from 3-point range proved to be a huge difference for Penn State.

"You've got yourself a great coach, and you've got some really good young players," Izzo said of Penn State. "We did not play good. We turned the ball over too much, but they had a lot to do with that."

Rhoades began his third season at Penn State with a roster that includes eight freshmen (three of whom start) and two players from Slovenia. The Nittany Lions won eight non-conference games against teams that ranked no higher than 200 nationally, according to the Ken Pomeroy ratings.

But Izzo said that Rhoades has a chance to build something at Penn State if he can retain his current roster.

"if he does, it's going to be a really good team because the guy can coach," Izzo said of Rhoades. "If he proved one thing today, coaching isn't Xs and Os. Don't kid yourself. Coaching is about the Jimmys and Joes. If you can get the Jimmys and Joes out of the cave to play, that's pretty special. He did a better job than I did."

Added Izzo, "[When] we watched film on them, we liked the pieces, and yet pieces don't win until coaching's developed and camaraderie's developed and chemistry's developed. And that doesn't just happen in 10 games. Probably what I've got going for me is, I do have that. And he will have that here. Just give him time and stick with him and get more people in the stands and all those things because the guy can coach."

Watch Izzo's full press conference here, courtesy of Mark Brennan at Lions247 with Fight on State.

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