Spartans and Tom Izzo’s familiarity with UConn have them Poised to Play Spoiler

DETROIT – For the third time in the last four seasons, Michigan State basketball has waltzed their way into the Sweet 16 of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. Next up for them is none other than a UConn team that is only a couple years removed from winning back-to-back national championships.

The matchup makes up one half of the remaining four teams in what many are calling the toughest region in this years bracket. Number one overall seed Duke will take on the Red Storm of St. John’s on Friday night in Chicago before the Spartans and Huskies meet just before 10pm Eastern time. John Scheyer, Rick Pitino, and Dan Hurley are quite the trio of head coaches heading to the United Center this weekend, but you don’t have to remind Tom Izzo of that.

“When you have UConn, Michigan State, St. John’s now with Rick and how they’re playing, and Duke. I mean, that’s not a regional final, that a final four,” said Izzo at his weekly press conference on Monday.

It’s no secret that the Spartans’ leader loves putting together a tough non-conference schedule to prepare his players for what they may face later on in the big dance. UConn just so happened to be a part of that scheme, even though it may not have counted towards MSU’s overall record.

Michigan State traveled to Storrs, Connecticut to play an exhibition game with Dan Hurley’s squad on October 28th of last year. The Huskies ended up winning by eight points in a contest that they had control of for most of regulation.

“When I say it wasn’t good for us, it was really good for us because we got punched in the mouth early in that game," Tom Izzo said when describing the preseason tilt that was not on broadcast television. “We did some good things when we watched the film. We did bad things. We have some coverages we’re gonna completely change. But they’re a different team too because now they got a horse they can throw it into."

The horse Izzo is referencing is UConn center, Tarris Reed Jr. who posted a whopping 31 points and 27 rebounds in a first round win over Furman. Reed, who transferred to the Huskies after spending two seasons with the Michigan Wolverines, was the first player to post such a stat line in an NCAA tournament game in nearly 60 years.

Needless to say he will be on Michigan State’s scouting report this week, along with senior forward Alex Karaban who led his team with 24.5 points per game during the first weekend of the tourney.

Those two are of course guided by the always vocal head coach, Dan Hurley, who had some kind words when asked about his Sweet 16 counterpart.

“I mean talk about an honor to share the sideline with one of the greatest coaches, Hurley said after his Huskies defeated UCLA in the Round of 32 on Sunday night. ”He’s always been my most respected coach that I’ve tried to model myself after at the college level. I love coach Izzo."

Michigan State and UConn will meet in the NCAA tournament for the first time on Friday night since Kevin Ollie and Shabazz Napier prevented Gary Harris and Adreian Payne from punching a ticket to the 2014 Final Four.