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A Tale of Two Teams Ahead of March Madness, inconsistency plagues MSU ILLUSTRATION: CLAIRE BARKHOLZ

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Tournament edition

Rachel Fradette Campus editor campus@statenews.com

E.L. mayor reflects on MSU riots following NCAA upsets and wins BY BRIGID KENNEDY BKENNEDY@STATENEWS.COM

For about 20 years, sport losses and victories have carried the potential for riots at MSU. East Lansing Mayor Mark Meadows’ career has been defined by the riots and his response partially to them. “As mayor, I may have been involved with more disturbances like riots than any other mayor in history,” Meadows said. “It’s been a real rollercoaster ride in many respects.” When the first riots broke out in 1996, Meadows recalls police and city officials in addition to other East Lansing residents were taken by surprise.

cle reads. “Soon after, the partier decided to set it on fire.” City officials worried the disturbances would continue after the Gunson Street riot, Meadows said. Then, in 1999, MSU lost to Duke in the NCAA Tournament. The resulting riots made it clear that the problem wouldn’t go away on its own. “That riot in particular seemed to be planned,” Meadows said. “People were bringing scrap wood and things like that into the city for at least a week before the event, and there were huge fires that developed.” Police briefs from March 30, 1999 reported damaged light posts, traffic signals and trees, windows broken in the Union and parking ramps, and

“As mayor, I may have been involved with more disturbances like riots than any other mayor in history. It’s been a real rollercoaster ride in many respects.” Mark Meadows, East Lansing mayor “The first real disturbance that we saw in the downtown was when the university closed Munn Field to alcohol, and so there was a demonstration regarding that, that spilled over onto the corner of Grand River and Abbot and just got out of hand,” Meadows said. “We didn’t really know what to do with it.” A year later, students rioted on Gunson Street after the police tried to crack down on alcohol use and house parties. The windshields of two police cars were broken, and MSU saw its first couch burning. “Several people at the disturbance said the street party began when students from different houses in the area gathered on Gunson to watch a student who was break-dancing in the street. The bonfire was started when a partier brought out a couch ‘to watch them dance,’” a Sept. 8, 1997 State News arti-

a door to the Natural Sciences Building was “destroyed.” One East Lansing resident described the city as a “war zone,” according to a March 30, 1999 State News article. Wood, a dumpster, a propane tank, couches and other furniture were burned before police broke up the gatherings of about 7,000 people using tear gas. Several cars, including police cruisers, were disassembled or burned by rioters. After a similar disturbance followed MSU’s loss to Texas in the 2003 NCAA Tournament in which police used more than 135 canisters of tear gas to dispel about 2,000 rioters, Meadows said the city began to work to combat the riots by including students and other members of the East Lansing community in the process. “I thought that we needed to do something to really address this issue, so I

A man stands on top of a car during a riot on March 27, 1999. STATE NEWS FILE PHOTO

created (the Mayor’s Riot Commission) that had members of the university and the police department, ASMSU and other student organizations, other neighborhood organizations,” Meadows said. “It issued a report with a series of recommendations — which I think were all ultimately implemented — as to how we should address these types of issues.” Since the recommendations of the commission were adopted in 2006,

East Lansing has had “some little conflagrations,” but no major riots, Meadows said. Riots in 2013 and 2015 caused thousands of dollars’ worth of damage and many participants were arrested, but no tear gas was used to disperse the crowds. Though the Mayor’s Riot Commission disbanded after it released its report, a celebrations committee was created to keep track of the city’s preparedness for and response to events of

PROMINENT RIOTS IN EAST LANSING A look back at riots that resulted from various reasons including NCAA Tournament outcomes March 27, 1999 MSU loses to Duke in the NCAA Tournament. More than 7,000 people riot on campus and in East Lansing.

Sept. 7, 1997 Students riot on Gunson Street after law enforcement tries to crack down on alcohol use and house parties. Police say burned couches at riot are something the department has never seen. Five police departments respond.

THE STATE N EWS

April 2, 2005 MSU loses to UNC in the NCAA Tournament and 21 students are arrested at Cedar Village.

March 30, 2003 MSU loses to Texas in the NCAA Tournament. Police use more than 135 canisters of tear gas to dispel about 2,000 rioters.

MONDAY, MARCH 1 3, 2 01 7

this nature. Meadows credited the committee with positive changes in policing, including the limited use of tear gas. After MSU’s loss to UNC in the 2005 NCAA Tournament, crowd control methods might have exacerbated the riots, Meadows said. Some rioters and spectators were prevented from leaving, which made the situation “even worse.” “We don’t do things the same way as we used to,” Meadows said.

March 29, 2015 MSU beats Louisville in the NCAA Tournament. About 750 people gather near Cedar Village. Four students are charged with disorderly conduct for throwing bagels during the riot.

Dec. 8, 2013 MSU beats Ohio State University for the Big Ten Championship. Riots in Cedar Village cause up to $10,000 worth of damage. According to a previous State News article, “there were potentially hundreds of fires throughout the city.”

Contents

Cameron Macko Managing editor cmacko@statenews.com

ONLINE

President Simon talks priorities

Incident date for football sexual assault

Wrestling heads to championship

The State News Editorial Board sat down with MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon before spring break

Players are under investigation for an incident which allegedly occurred on Jan. 16.

MSU wrestling team heads to St. Louis on March 16 for the NCAA championship

BY T H E N U M B E R S

Number of students arrested following MSU’s loss to UNC in the NCAA Tournament in 2005 See page 2

“When we are at our best, we’re about excellence, we’re about teamwork, we’re about accessibility, we’re about opportunity.”

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COPY CHIEF Casey Holland

Scott Westerman, Associate Vice President for Alumni Relations on MSU’s 1979 victory in the NCAA Tournament PAGES 6 AND 7

MSU marching band plays during a timeout in the second half of the game against Penn State during the second round of the Big Ten Tournament on March 9 at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The Spartans defeated the Nittany Lions, 78-51. PHOTO: ZAINA MAHMOUD

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Tournament edition

MSU men’s basketball plagued by inconsistency ahead of No. 9 seed BY CASEY HARRISON CHARRISON@STATENEWS.COM

WASHINGTON, D.C. — There’s no question this season has been a challenge for head coach Tom Izzo. With the arrival of a highly-touted freshman class and a rigorous travel schedule in non-conference play, Izzo often said this season is a new benchmark in his career — putting the program in “uncharted territory.” But for the 20th consecutive season, through the growing pains of starting a freshmen-dominated lineup, injuries and midseason lulls, Izzo’s Spartans have found themselves in the NCAA Tournament, this time as a No. 9 seed. Plagued since the start Just as it was in 2011, the Spartans sit at 19-14 overall heading into March Madness. This year’s Spartans began the year winless against AP top-25 opponents to start the season 4-4. Depth began to hinder MSU throughout the season as well. Senior forward Gavin Schilling and graduate student forward Ben Carter missed the season from the start after they sustained separate knee injuries. Fifth-year senior Eron Harris suffered a season-ending injury on Feb. 18 against Purdue, creating a thin rotation for the team’s wings. Freshman forward Miles Bridges was also sidelined with an ankle injury after the team’s loss to Duke on Nov. 29. A jarring loss to Northeastern on Dec. 18 officially stirred the narrative of a team in jeopardy of missing an invitation to the Big Dance. “I just feel like we passed through so much at the beginning of the season,” freshman shooting guard Joshua Langford said. “If you looked at our schedule early in the season, you know we had some ups and downs, but it’s preparing us for now. Now we know how to deal with adversity, and that’s what you want to see in a tournament situation because this is March and that’s why they call it (March) Madness.” Ranked low For the three upperclassmen who’ve been through the gauntlet of a decked-out schedule, there was never any angst when it came to Selection Sunday and where, if at all, the Spartans would place in the tournament. The only focus going forward will be maintaining consistency in postseason scenarios. “There’s no anxiety,” senior shooting guard Alvin Ellis III said. “It’s going to be the same mentality. It’s one-and-done time. I try to keep stressing it to the guys, especially the younger guys, by saying, ‘We need every game’ and we’re going to take it one game at a time.” Ellis has started the last six games at shooting guard since Harris went down with the injury. Harris averaged 22.1 minutes and 10.4 points per game this season. Since the injury to Harris, Ellis has averaged 27 minutes and 6.2 points a game.

Freshman forward Nick Ward (44) expresses emotion after the games against Minnesota in the third round of the Big Ten Tournament on March 10 at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The Spartans were defeated by the Golden Gophers, 63-58. PHOTO: ZAINA MAHMOUD

Even with a healthy Bridges, losses to Penn State University, Ohio State University and Indiana midway through conference play questioned the team’s physical grit and mental toughness. Izzo criticized his team’s with each loss and narrow win with approaching their opponent with an “AAU mentality.” The return of Bridges did, however, help Izzo steer the ship and dismiss any worries of a missing the tourney. Bridges, the unanimous Big Ten Freshman of the Year, carried the team when needed and helped MSU earn key wins in the regular season over Minnesota, Northwestern, University of Michigan and Wisconsin. “We just have to be ready to play every game,” Bridges said. “We’re trying to play for a championship. That’s what we do here. We don’t settle for less. We can’t be satisfied. We just have to continue to play hard.“ The fight ahead But squashing MSU’s “AAU mentality,” or tendencies of missed execution, has been a work in progress for Izzo the entire season. Even after MSU’s 63-58 loss to Minnesota in the Big Ten Tournament, Izzo and the play-

“‘We need every game’ and we’re going to take it one game at a time.” Alvin Ellis III Senior shooting guard 4

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ers said the Golden Gophers earned the win by out-toughing the Spartans. When starting three freshmen for most of the season and playing four for nearly 20 minutes in each game, Izzo said MSU’s lack of competitiveness isn’t a product of laziness, but rather the result of inexperience. “I think that’s the problem nowadays, no one understands about winning,” Izzo said. “It’s the AAU mentality. I felt like my team, and me myself, didn’t do a very good job of handling that. If it doesn’t hurt, if it doesn’t bother them, if they want to forget it today or tomorrow, I’m not going to.” Priming the Spartans for consistent play has been no easy task, and it’s a burden each player carries upon themselves. Izzo said he blames himself because the freshmen aren’t experienced enough to develop urgency in playoff situations. The inconsistencies turn into self-doubt. The tale of two teams becomes imminent. These same Spartans blew Penn State out in their first round of the conference tournament and held a nearly 30-point lead, but fell to Minnesota the next day because they came unprepared. “If they don’t understand it, that would be like the math teacher that flunks the student,” Izzo said. “It’s the teacher’s fault that they don’t understand it. It’s the coach’s fault. I have to do a better job of that. I will do a better job of that, but at the same time I’m not going to allow my team to think that’s the way Michigan State plays, because it’s not.” When close games turn erratic, and eventually into a loss, the self-loathing trickles

down to the players. “We can’t keep using losses to motivate us because it’s one-and-done time,” Bridges said. “It just seemed like we were satisfied with everything. We didn’t accomplish anything, but we play like we did.” Time to assert itself Izzo said one of the biggest reasons the team has struggled to overwhelm its opponents is because players are not assertive. Junior point guard Lourawls “Tum Tum” Nairn Jr. is the consensus clubhouse leader of the Spartans, but hasn’t put up the results to match the status quo of an on-the-court leader. Izzo said he knows Bridges needs to be the man to take initiative. “They’re unbelievable guys,” Izzo said. “But with good guys, sometimes you need a jerk. I guess that’s why I’m here. A full-fledged jerk, sometimes you do need that on your team. That’s what I’m hoping Miles (Bridges) will turn into in a bit.” For Bridges, Nick Ward, Langford and point guard Cassius Winston to play as well as they have been is one of the reasons why MSU was in the hunt for a tournament berth in the first place. Izzo’s four freshmen have accounted for 488 of the team’s 850 made field goals. “We asked a lot out of those guys for being so young,” Nairn said. “I think as leaders we have to do a better job of helping them out.” Most of the team’s growing pains can be credited to Izzo’s reliance on the freshmen, as well as the lack of depth down the stretch, but Izzo isn’t using it as an excuse. Neither are his players. As Izzo has leaned on his first

Tournament edition

Cameron Macko Managing editor cmacko@statenews.com

years down the stretch, they’ve been forced to play better than their age allows. “Us freshmen, we’re really sophomores now,” Langford said. “We’re not really freshmen anymore, we’ve been around the block a little bit. Also, overall I feel like we’ve become a better team. We’re a stronger team. Everybody understands their role and everybody understands their purpose on this team and what their job is.” MSU will play No. 8 seed University of Miami on Friday. With Izzo’s 20th-straight season at the Big Dance a lock, the Spartans are confident in their ability to thrive in March. “We have to keep surviving and advancing,” Langford said.

“We can’t keep using losses to motivate us because it’s one-and-done time.” Miles Bridges, Freshman forward

Head coach Tom Izzo expresses emotion during the second half of the game against Minnesota in the third round of the Big Ten Tournament on March 10 at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The Spartans were defeated by the Golden Gophers, 63-58. PHOTO: ZAINA MAHMOUD

Freshman guard Joshua Langford (1) shoots the ball in the second half of the game against Penn State during the second round of the Big Ten Tournament on March 9 at Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The Spartans defeated the Nittany Lions, 78-51. PHOTO: ZAINA MAHMOUD

MONDAY, MARC H 1 3, 2 01 7

T H E STATE N E WS

Tournament edition

Stephen Olschanski City editor city@statenews.com

MSU alumni recount thrill of winning it all BY JOHN LAVACCARE JLAVACCARE@STATENEWS.COM

On March 26, 1979, Scott Westerman, like many other MSU students, alumni and fans, huddled around the television cheering on his Spartans in the NCAA title game against Indiana State. Less than a year after his graduation from MSU Westerman was living in the Lansing area with his wife, who was pregnant with the couple’s first child — their daughter, Shelby. “She was a very quiet child until that last game,” Westerman said. “That was when we knew for sure she was coming, because she started kicking about the time things started to get interesting. She was born the following September and has been a Spartan fan ever since.” Westerman is just one Spartan fan with his own recollections of the day the Spartans won their first NCAA basketball championship. Alumni Jay Williams, Todd Rosin and two of their other fraternity brothers drove from East Lansing to Park City, Utah to see the championship game live, skiing and watching tour-

nament games in bars along the way. “(Four) of us, (eight) pairs of skies crammed into my Mustang II headed for Steamboat, Aspen, Park City and the all time greatest NCA A Basketball National Championship Game ever,” Rosin said in an email. “Heading to the game, bought tickets I think 30 minutes before tip off. We were in the last row, but totally worth it ... I still have pictures of the game and the car in the middle of nowhere on our way to (Park City).” Amanda Weinstein, an alumna who graduated in 2001, was living in an apartment complex during the Spartans’ 2000 championship run and was not on campus after the final victory. However, she said she could hear cheers throughout her apartment complex during the game. “It was all anyone could talk about,” Weinstein said of the scene on campus after the victory. “People like me who are total fair weather fans, are like, ‘Oh, yeah, you know, (Mateen) Cleaves did this, and then, you know, (A.J.) Granger did that,’ and I don’t think I had any idea what I was talking about that, but, for those four years I was there, I was the biggest

basketball fan.” Both championships are linked by the deep postseason runs that immediately preceded them: the 1977-78 Spartans advanced to the Elite Eight, while the 1998-99 Spartans had made it all the way to the Final Four, losing to Duke in the national semifinal game. “We were very spoiled, my class,” Weinstein said. “Because the year before, they made it to the Final Four. So we always assumed that Michigan State would be a great ... basketball team and a really stinky football team, that was just my generation of it.” Alumna Sherri Everett’s then-boyfriend, now her husband, was in California for a co-op during the winter term of 1978-79, so she had an extra ticket to each regular season game to take a friend to. She recalled a certain “vibe” in Jenison Field House that season that let her know something special was in store. “It was always super packed, obviously,” Everett said. “Magic (Johnson) just had this really unselfish attitude about playing basketball, but yet it was so much fun. You know, that giant smile. His attitude was so great, and it was contagious.”

Then-MSU senior forward Morris Peterson jumps onto then-junior forward Steve Cherry after the Spartans beat Florida 89-76 in the NCAA National Championship game at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Ind. on April 3, 2000. STATE NEWS FILE PHOTO

History 420

SEXUALITY: The History Online this summer http://history.msu.edu/online-course-list/

Through first-hand accounts, fiction, film, art & artifacts, this class introduces students to the many ways people have understood sex, gender, sexuality & the body, around the world and across time. This course has no prerequisites. UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS SEEKING EMPLOYMENT NOW OR IN THE FUTURE, PLEASE JOIN THE CLOROX COMPANY FOR THE FOLLOWING EXCITING CAMPUS EVENTS:

Information Session

Join us for a company presentation and networking event. Learn about our open positions, leadership development programs and general info on opportunities for engineers within consumer product companies.

When: Tues, March 14 from 6 – 8pm Where: 2250 Engineering Bldg *Pizza and Refreshments Provided*

Join us for an informal opportunity to ask any questions related to The Clorox Company and our engineering opportunities. MSU alumns now working at Clorox will be onsite to network with you!

When: Wed, March 15 from 9–11:30am Where: Engineering Bldg Lobby *Coffee and Breakfast Provided*

Drop in Event

We are looking for internship and full-time candidates in the following majors:

Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Applied Engineering Sciences, Materials Science

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THE STATE N EWS

MONDAY, MARCH 1 3, 2 01 7

Dr. Aminda Smith 1st Summer Session

5/15/17 – 6/29/17

Tournament edition Johnson’s personality was part of what made the 1978-79 Spartans so electrifying for many students. As a Lansing native, Johnson was a known figure on MSU’s campus even before he enrolled. Everett said he would sometimes play basketball at the outdoor courts near Brody Hall when he was a junior in high school. Westerman, who worked at Lansing pop and disco radio station W VIC, recalled Johnson coming into the station after finishing his homework to play some of his favorite music. Westerman said he remembers Johnson as a fan of the Commodores, among other artists. “One of the things I’ve always liked about Earvin is his authenticity,” Westerman said. “No matter how successful he’s become, he’s always remained accessible and is a truly nice guy, I mean, what you see is the way he is, and that was definitely evident when he was on campus.” Everett said both she and her husband come from families with large contingents of University of Michigan alumni. The championship gave the Spartan side of the family bragging rights for a period of time, Everett said. “We always kind of take the stand in our family that we’re just quiet,” Everett said. “Because our Michigan siblings and parents tend to be very vocal about

Stephen Olschanski City editor city@statenews.com

how wonderful they are, and to just be able to silence them for a year is very, very nice. We don’t have to say a whole lot, you know?” For Westerman, winning the basketball championship was “an affirmation of the best that Spartans can be.” “When we are at our best, we’re about excellence, we’re about teamwork, we’re about

accessibility, we’re about opportunity,” Westerman said. “There were players on that team that represented every one of those characteristics of what it means to be a Spartan. And it really just kind of amplified what we already knew that we were as Spartans, and the ripples of that year continue to be felt across the generations.”

DISCOVER THE HISTORY OF HUMAN CIVILIZATION

FROM THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS TO THE AGE OF EXPLORATION

Photo collage of MSU men’s basketball’s national championship victory in 1979. PHOTO: THE STATE NEWS ARCHIVES

WORLD HISTORY PART I DR. LIAM BROCKEY • FIRST SESSION • 5/15 – 6/29

ATTENTION: MSU SENIORS!

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MONDAY, MARC H 1 3, 2 01 7

TH E STATE N E WS

Crossword

L.A. Times Daily Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Lewis

Tournament edition

Souichi Terada Sports editor sports@statenews.com

Bracket busters to look out for as the NCAA Tournament heats up this year ACROSS

1 Tie up at the pier 5 Basics 9 Expressive chat image 14 “That works for me” 15 “Dang!” 16 Cars sold at auctions 17 Nabisco chocolate creme cookie 18 Vermeer or van Gogh 20 Postgraduate degree 22 First-class 23 Sailor 24 Tanning lotion letters 27 Golf hole benchmark 29 Snacked (on) to excess, briefly 32 Pinup queen Page 34 __ buco: veal dish 36 Mob kingpin 38 PG-13 issuing org. 39 __ vincit amor 40 Restful resorts 41 Vase material named for its white color 43 Window insert 44 Wiped off the board 45 Genghis __ 48 ‘60s tripping drug 49 Took command of 50 “Morning Edition” airer 52 Lion’s den 54 Turning point in tennis, and a hint to this puzzle’s circled letters

59 Casino big spender 62 Veggie in a green smoothie 63 Sleep lab study 64 Where Norway’s Royal Family resides 65 Biblical paradise 66 L.A.’s region 67 Pics on ankles 68 Hair-coloring agents

DOWN

1 Gloom partner 2 Cajun veggie 3 Course including romaine and croutons 4 Greenhouse gas protocol city 5 Loved to death 6 Get-up-and-go 7 New cow 8 Mar. 17th honoree 9 Horn of Africa nation 10 Clothing store department 11 Withdraw, with “out” 12 G.I. doll 13 Dead Sea country: Abbr. 19 Lawrence’s land 21 U2’s “The Joshua Tree” co-producer Brian 24 “Enough!” 25 Residents around the Leaning Tower

26 __ up: came clean 27 Saddle knob 28 Aim high 30 Madame Bovary 31 Language of Copenhagen, in Copenhagen 33 Culinary meas. 35 Acorn droppers 37 Pike or trout 39 Seasoned expert 42 Army leader 46 Last Olds models 47 Catch red-handed 51 Place to keep a camper, for short 53 Irritated 54 Mets’ old stadium 55 “Casablanca” woman 56 Boston NBAer 57 Protected from the wind 58 Some male dolls 59 Owns 60 NASDAQ debut 61 Health supplements co.

Head coach Tom Izzo talks to then-senior forward Matt Costello during the game against Middle Tennessee State University on March 18, 2016 at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Mo. The Spartans were defeated by the Blue Raiders, 90-81. STATE NEWS FILE PHOTO

Get the solutions at statenews.com/puzzles

BY CONNOR CLARK CCLARK@STATENEWS.COM

Level: 1

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit www. sudoku.org.uk SOLUTION TO SATURDAY’S PUZZLE

Get the solutions at statenews.com/ puzzles

The task of correctly picking an upset team is an art. Here are four teams from mid-major conferences to look out for when filling out your bracket. 1. MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY BLUE RAIDERS (30-4 OVERALL)

CONNOR CLARK

Cue heavy breathing from MSU fans, the Blue Raiders are better than last season when they upset the Spartans as a No. 15 seed. With an RPI of 35, Middle Tennessee is led by JaCorey Williams and his 17.3 points per game. Just behind Williams is MSU slayer Giddy Potts with 15.8 points per game. They won the Conference USA with a record of 17-1. Key wins include: Vanderbilt by 23 points and UNC Wilmington by five points. Their only bad loss was to Georgia State by eight points. The Blue Raiders are the No. 12 seed in the South and will play No. 5 Minnesota in the first round. 2. UNC WILMINGTON SEAHAWKS (29-5 OVERALL)

3/13/17

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The Seahawks will play as the No. 12 seed in the East against No. 5 Virginia. This season the Seahawks own an RPI of 27 and are

led by C.J. Bryce at 17.6 points per game. The Seahawks have the 10th best offense in Division I men’s basketball with 85.2 points per game. UNC Wilmington has won its last seven games and was the winner of the Colonial Athletic Association. 3. WINTHROP EAGLES (26-6 OVERALL)

The Eagles defeated three teams with RPI’s inside of the top 100: Illinois, Furman and UNC Asheville. They will play as the No. 13 seed against No. 4 seed Butler Bulldogs in Milwaukee, Wis. Winthrop is led by a dynamic duo of Keon Johnson and Xavier Cooks. Johnson leads the team at 22.5 points per game and Cooks has 16.3 points per game with 9.2 rebounds per game. The Eagles defeated Campbell 76-59 in the Big South Championship game. 4. FLORIDA GULF COAST UNIVERSITY (26-7 OVERALL)

Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles will be the No. 14 seed and face No. 3 seed Florida State Seminoles in Orlando, Fla. Nicknamed “Dunk City,” the Eagles finished first in the Atlantic Sun Conference. They have one win against the RPI top 50, against UT Arlington. They lost to MSU on Nov. 20, 2016, 78-77, however the game received attention for the end of the game shot clock controversy.

SPARTAN BASKETBALL 19-14, 10-8 BIG TEN

Freshman guard Joshua Langford (1) jogs onto the court before the game against Minnesota in the third round of the Big Ten Tournament on March 10 at Verizon Center in Washington D.C. The Spartans were defeated by the Golden Gophers, 63-58. PHOTO: ZAINA MAHMOUD

BY THE NUMBERS MSU SEASON STATS REBOUNDS PER GAME 36.7

miles

BRIDGES SEASON STATS POINTS PER GAME

16.7

REBOUNDS PER GAME

8.3

ASSISTS PER GAME

2.0

FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE

48.1%

3-POINT FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE

38.8%

FREE THROW PERCENTAGE

68.7%

FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE

46.8%

3-POINT PERCENTAGE

37.6%

FREE THROW PERCENTAGE

66.4%

POINTS PER GAME

71.7 ASSISTS PER GAME 17

WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT MILES BRIDGES Former McDonaldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s All-American was named Team MVP

Earned All-Big Ten second team honors along with Big Ten Freshman of the Year

Missed seven games with an ankle injury, but came back to average 16.6 points per game in the regular season

NEXT OPPONENT University of Miami Freshman forward Miles Bridges (22) dunks the ball during the first half of the game against Minnesota in the third round of the Big Ten Tournament on March 10 at Verizon Center in Washington D.C. The Spartans were defeated by the Golden Gophers, 63-58. PHOTO: ZAINA MAHMOUD

March 17 BOK Center, Tulsa, Okla.

MONDAY, MARC H 1 3, 2 01 7

T H E STATE N E WS

Tournament edition

McKenna Ross Features editor features@statenews.com

Need to knows about March Madness BY THE NUMBERS

The four teams left standing in their respective regions will play for the title.

Referred to as the Sweet Sixteen, after two rounds of play only sixteen teams are left in the tournament.

32 The number of teams left standing after the first round of games are played in each region.

68 The number of teams invited to play for the national title. Four of the teams have to compete for their spot in the tournament in play-in games.

terms to know CINDERELLA TEAM •

Similar to the fairytale character, this represents an underdog team that ends up being more successful than its expected tournament performance.

SLEEPER/DARK HORSE •

These two are essentially the same. They refer to teams that aren’t expected to win, but still stand a chance of winning it all.

MID-MAJOR •

Used particularly in NCAA Division I college sports, schools that don’t fall within top tier conferences are assigned this title.

MARCH MADNESS •

Another term for the NCAA Tournament. People have called this time of year a time of craziness because of the unpredictability of the tournament.

THE BIG DANCE •

Theorized to play along with Cinderella teams, this is another way to talk about the tournament. It was coined by Marquette University head coach Al McGuire.

UPSET •

Based on the seed and expectation, this refers to a team that defeated the team that was favored to win.

SEED •

The teams eligible to play are divided into four groups of 16 and ranked. Each team receives a seed, or ranking, in the tournament.

AUTOMATIC BID •

THE STATE N EWS

MONDAY, MARCH 1 3, 2 01 7

Opposite of at-large berths, automatic bid teams are conference tournament winners and are placed into the national tournament.

people to know MIKE KRZYZEWSKI (COACH K) Coach K has led Duke to five national championships. He has served as the head coach for Duke University since 1980 and the team has made 12 Final Fours under him.

JOHN CALIPARI The head coach at the University of Kentucky since 2009, Calipari previously coached two other universities. He is known for helping 39 players get drafted into the NBA.

JIM NANTZ When watching nationally televised sports, there is a good chance you are listening to this play-by-play sportscaster. He has been with CBS since 1985.

GRAYSON ALLEN This college basketball player for Duke University has made a name for himself not only with his basketball talent, but by his tendency to trip opponents during play.

LONZO BALL This freshman guard, a player for the UCLA Bruins, is projected to be selected in the NBA draft. Wearing No. 2 for UCLA, Ball received national recognition for his high school performance.

Tournament edition

McKenna Ross Features editor features@statenews.com

The methods, tactics for higher seeds to prevail against the odds BY JONATHAN LEBLANC JLEBLANC@STATENEWS.COM

Upsets, dark horse teams and possible Cinderella teams are a main subject of March Madness every year, from fans who have been watching every game since Nov. 11 to people who enjoy filling out a bracket and trying to make a quick buck. Whether it’s through careful and thorough research on players from each team and weighing all the factors that go into a matchup or picking the university with the coolest name or uniforms, some say they enjoy looking for upsets while filling out brackets. “It’s something to do,” human biology sophomore Neil Hinkson said. “It’s a social kind of thing.” Some of these upset picks never come to fruition. Others are neither predicted nor expected, such as VCU’s Final Four run in 2011 as an 11th seed, Butler’s backto-back championship appearances in 2010 as a fifth seed and 2011 as an eighth seed, to NC State’s legendary run as a sixth seed in 1983 that resulted in its

second national championship. These are three teams that have been seeded fifth or higher since 1979 and made the Final Four, with only NC State in 1983, Villanova in 1985, Kansas in 1988 and UConn in 2014 — who beat MSU in the Elite Eight that year — winning the championship. “Obviously you always kind of root for them, especially if they’re playing a really big program you might not like,” elementary education sophomore Sam Shoberg said. “Sometimes you do root for the underdogs, but you know it’s happened to us when we’ve been knocked out by the underdog.” To get far in the Big Dance, these higher-seeded teams have to advance while going against some of the college basketball superpowers, the lower-seeded teams. Factors that go into Cinderella runs include seeding and how the team plays toward the end of the season. “If they’re a 10 seed but they won their past six (or) seven games, I’ll pick them,” business-preference freshman Eric Burley said. “They usually have a change of lineup or do something better and I

QUICK FACTS ABOUT HIGHER-SEEDED TEAMS

see the potential in them.” Take MSU in 2015 for example, when the Spartans were a seventh seed after losing to Wisconsin in overtime in the Big Ten championship game and after not being in the AP Top 25 from Dec. 22, 2014 onward. Their path to the Final Four in 2015 could be seen as a more favorable path because of the teams they played, such as the No. 2-seeded University of Virginia, which that year had one of the best defenses in the nation, but had the eighth worst offense in terms of points scored among March Madness teams. In the Sweet Sixteen the Spartans played the Oklahoma Sooners, which had then-junior guard Buddy Hield as their only threat. After a Sweet Sixteen win against the Sooners, MSU’s opponents in the Elite Eight and Final Four — Louisville and Duke — really challenged its Cinderella run. And when a team is challenged like MSU was in 2015, veteran leadership is a key factor in advancing round to round for Cinderella teams in March Madness.

Ten teams since 2000 who have been seeded as a No. 6 seed or higher have made the Final Four out of the possible 64 teams (Including MSU in 2015).

MSU has lost to two eventual Cinderella teams that made the Final Four (George Mason in 2006 and UConn in 2014. UConn won the national championship).

Six of the 10 teams that have seeded No. 6 or higher since 2000 have returned to the Big Dance the next year.

MSU has lost to eight teams that have been seeded higher than No. 6 since 1985.

Eight of the 10 Final Four teams seeded No. 6 or higher since 2000 have had an upperclassman as their leading scorer.

Between the 10 teams that made the Final Four since 2000 with a No. 6 or higher seed, the average is 70.5 points per game.