Matt Painter Incredibly Complimentary of Tom Izzo's Record-Breaking Career

When Bob Knight set the Big Ten wins record at Indiana, Matt Painter didn't think it would ever get broken. On Tuesday night, the Purdue coach compared it to Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak in Major League Baseball — making Tom Izzo's career achievement at Michigan State even more impressive.

Izzo broke the Big Ten wins record on Saturday night with a 79-65 road win over Illinois, getting his 354th conference victory. Tuesday, the longtime Spartans leader added another tally to his growing wins total with a 75-66 win over Purdue.

Following the game, Painter was asked for his thoughts regarding Izzo's remarkable accomplishment. The Purdue coach and 20-year veteran in the Big Ten provided a thoughtful and complimentary response.

"It's unbelievable. I think they cut me off in the (tribute) video, which that's a smart decision to cut me off, I compared it to Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hit streak, obviously it still stands, right? It's just one of those things," Painter said.

"For me, it's different. He recruited me — I'm 54, so that means he's old — when he was an assistant here. So, I've known him for a really long time. He's done it the right way. It's hard, man. Battling everybody in competition, but also battling your own people.

"I think people don't realize the people that support you, you battle also. When you raise your expectations and you go to 8 Final Fours and (win) 10 Big Ten championships, people expect that. As a coach, what people expect from you is your best year. So, if he doesn't win the national championship, win the Big Ten, he's shit, right? And we all know he's really good.

"If you can't handle that then you shouldn't coach. Treat people the right way, work hard, do the best you can, but understand it's a game of basketball. But he's been able to take that and change a lot of people's lives and give people opportunities.

"It's still like, besides the Army or Navy, somebody getting a scholarship has changed more lives than anything out there. Somebody getting an opportunity to start their life with an advantage, and sports can help you so much. But you also have to have discipline in life. He obviously has discipline, he's on people, but he cares about them. That's something we always talk about — we don't yell at people we don't care about. He's the epitome of that and he deserves everything coming his way."

After Purdue's loss to Michigan State Tuesday night, Matt Painter responded to a question from Jack Ebling about Tom Izzo: pic.twitter.com/vVG3qRcZws
— Spartans Illustrated (@SpartansRivals) February 19, 2025

Izzo is the longest-tenured coach in the Big Ten, currently in his 30th season as the leader at Michigan State. Painter is second, now in his 20th year at Purdue. The two have a lot of respect for one another.

Painter put that on full display following Tuesday's game.

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