1998–99 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

1998–99 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball
Big Ten regular season champions
Big Ten Tournament champions
NCAA Tournament, Final Four
Conference Big Ten Conference
Ranking
Coaches No. 3
AP No. 2
1998–99 record 33–5 (15–1 Big Ten)
Head coach Tom Izzo (4th season)
Assistant coach Tom Crean (4th season)
Assistant coach Stan Heath (3rd season)
Assistant coach Mike Garland (3rd season)
Captain Mateen Cleaves
Captain Antonio Smith
Captain Jason Klein
Captain Thomas Kelley
Home arena Breslin Center
1998–99 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
Conf     Overall
Team W   L   PCT     W   L   PCT
#2 Michigan State 15 1   .938     33 5   .868
#19 Indiana 9 7   .563     23 11   .676
#18 Wisconsin 9 7   .563     22 10   .688
#21 Iowa 9 7   .563     20 10   .667
Minnesota 8 8   .500     17 11   .607
#11 Purdue 7 9   .438     21 13   .618
Northwestern 6 10   .375     15 14   .517
Penn State 5 11   .313     13 14   .481
Illinois 3 13   .188     14 18   .438
#14 Ohio State** 0 1   .000     1 1   .500
Michigan* 0 11   .000     0 19   .000
1999 Big Ten Tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll
*Michigan: 12 reg. season games vacated due to sanctions against the program
**Ohio State: 29 reg. season games; 5 NCAA Tourn. games vacated due to sanctions against the program
Disputed records: Michigan-(12-19)(5-11); Ohio State-(27-9)(12-4)

The 1998–99 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 1998–99 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team played their home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan and were coached by fourth-year head coach, Tom Izzo. The Spartans finished the season 33–5, 15–1 to win the Big Ten regular season championship. MSU won the Big Ten Tournament and received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament as a No.1 seed. They advanced to the Final Four before losing to Duke. The 33 wins marked a school record for wins in a season.

Previous season

The Spartans finished the 1997–98 season 22–8, 13–3 in Big Ten play to earn a share of the Big Ten regular season championship. They lost in the quarterfinals of the inaugural Big Ten Tournament to Minnesota. Michigan State received an at-large bid as a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, their first trip to the Tournament under Tom Izzo. They defeated Eastern Michigan and Princeton to advance to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to No. 1-seeded North Carolina.

Season summary

The Spartans, fresh off their first trip to the Sweet Sixteen since 1990, started the season ranked No. 5 in the country. Michigan State was led by juniors Mateen Cleaves (11.7 points and 7.2 assists per game) and Morris Peterson (13.6 points and 5.7 rebounds per game).

The Spartans played three top seven teams in their first seven games. MSU lost all three: at No. 7 Temple,[1] versus No. 4 Duke at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois,[2] and at No. 1 Connecticut.[3] However, the Spartans finished the non–conference season without another loss and a record of 11–3 while ranked No. 14 in the country.

After losing their first Big Ten game to No. 24 Wisconsin,[4][5] the Spartans won the remaining 15 games in conference. The wins included wins against No. 19 Minnesota,[6] No. 14 Iowa,[7] at No. 18 Indiana,[8] No. 15 Ohio State,[9] at No. 14 Iowa,[10] at No. 22 Minnesota,[11] No. 17 Purdue,[12][13] No. 14 Wisconsin,[14][15] and at No. 23 Purdue.[16][17] The Spartans won the Big Ten conference regular season by six games with a record of 15–1. MSU finished the regular season ranked No. 2 in the country.

The Spartans earned the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and faced Northwestern in the quarterfinals. MSU struggled in the game and appeared to be headed toward a second-straight early exit from only the second-ever Big Ten Tournament, but Matteen Cleaves hit a clutch shot with 37 second remaining to give MSU a two-point win.[18] In the semifinals, MSU faced No. 19 Wisconsin, the only team that had beaten MSU in the regular season. The Spartans held Wisconsin scoreless for nearly 11 minutes in the second half on their way to 56–41 win.[19][20] The win propelled the Spartans to the championship game against Cinderalla Illinois, who had finished last in conference, but had made a run to the championship game. With MSU looking to lock up a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and Illinois looking to simply make the Tournament with a win, the Spartans blew out the Illini 67–50 to win their first Big Ten Tournament championship.[21] The win gave the Spartans the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

The Spartans were awarded a No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region. In a First Round victory over Mount St. Mary's, MSU used tough defense to hold off the Mountaineers, 76–53.[22] In the Second Round, the Spartans faced No. 9-seeded Mississippi. Michigan State used a late 13–0 run to hold off the upset and defeat the Rebels, 73–66.[23] Cleaves led the Spartans with 18 points as they advanced to their second straight Sweet Sixteen.[23] In the Sweet Sixteen, No. 13-seeded Oklahoma pushed the Spartans and MSU struggled offensively.[24] However, Andre Hutson's 13 points led the Spartans to hard-fought 54–46 win, their 21st straight win.[25] In the Elite Eight for the first time since winning the championship since 1979, MSU faced No. 3-seeded and No. 8-ranked Kentucky. Michigan State trailed by as many 13 points early in the contest, but they fought back to beat Kentucky 73–66 to advance to the Final Four.[26][27] There, they were re-matched against the overall No. 1 seed, Duke, who had defeated them 73–67 early in the season. With the Spartans riding a 22-game winning streak, Duke was able to beat the Spartans 68–62, ending their season.[28][29]

Roster and statistics

1998–99 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team
Name Class Pos Height Summary
Adam Ballinger FR F 6'9" 1.5 Pts, 1.3 Reb, 0.3 Ast
Charlie Bell SO G 6"3" 7.8 Pts, 3.8 Reb, 1.0 Ast
Steve Cherry SO G 6'6" 0.5 Pts, 0.4 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Mateen Cleaves JR G 6'2" 11.7 Pts, 1.6 Reb, 7.2 Ast
Doug Davis SO G 6'3" 1.9 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 1.1 Ast
A.J. Granger SO F 6'9" 6.6 Pts, 3.9 Reb, 0.6 Ast
Lorenzo Guess SO G 6'3" 0.8 Pts, 0.6 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Andre Hutson SO F 6'8" 8.9 Pts, 5.2 Reb, 0.6 Ast
Thomas Kelley SR G 6'2" 5.1 Pts, 1.2 Reb, 1.3 Ast
Jason Klein SR F 6'7" 9.4 Pts, 2.7 Reb, 1.0 Ast
Morris Peterson JR F 6'7" 13.6 Pts, 5.7 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Antonio Smith SR F 6'8" 6.5 Pts, 8.4 Reb, 1.1 Ast
Brandon Smith SO G 5'11" 0.3 Pts, 0.1 Reb, 0.2 Ast
Source[30]

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Exhibition

Nov 4, 1998*
No. 5 Estonia Select Team W 83–63 
Breslin Center (14,569)
East Lansing, MI

Nov 10, 1998*
No. 5 Athletes in Action W 101–79 
Breslin Center (14,667)
East Lansing, MI
Non-conference regular season

Nov 13, 1998*
No. 5 Northeast Louisiana W 89–58  1–0
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Nov 17, 1998*
No. 5 at Oakland W 96–66  2–0
Athletics Center O'rena (3,405)
Auburn Hills, MI

Nov 20, 1998*
, ESPN
No. 5 at No. 7 Temple L 59–60  2–1
Liacouras Center (10,206)
Philadelphia, PA

Nov 27, 1998*
No. 7 Central Florida
Coca Cola Spartan Classic semifinals
W 87–64  3–1
Breslin Center 
East Lansing, MI

Nov 28, 1998*
No. 7 Western Michigan
Coca Cola Spartan Classic championship
W 87–64  4–1
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Dec 2, 1998*
, ESPN
No. 9 vs. No. 4 Duke
Great Eight
L 67–73  4–2
United Center (19,412)
Chicago, IL

Dec 5, 1998*
, CBS
No. 9 at No. 1 Connecticut L 68–82  4–3
Harry A. Gampel Pavilion (10,207)
Storrs, CT

Dec 10, 1998*
No. 14 East Tennessee State W 86–53  5–3
Breslin Center (5,335)
East Lansing, MI

Dec 13, 1998*
No. 14 Illinois–Chicago W 77–33  6–3
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Dec 21, 1998*
No. 14 vs. Pepperdine
Pearl Harbor Classic
W 79–67  7–3
George Q. Cannon Activities Center 
Laie, HI

Dec 22, 1998*
No. 15 vs. Tulsa
Pearl Harbor Classic semifinals
W 68–58  8–3
George Q. Cannon Activities Center 
Laie, HI

Dec 23, 1998*
No. 15 vs. Alabama
Pearl Harbor Classic championship
W 75–58  9–3
George Q. Cannon Activities Center 
Laie, HI

Dec 30, 1998*
No. 13 North Carolina–Asheville W 64–39  10–3
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Jan 2, 1999*
, CBS
No. 14 Louisville W 59–57  11–3
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI
Big Ten regular season

Jan 6, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 12 at No. 24 Wisconsin L 51–66  11–4
(0–1)
Kohl Center (15,504)
Madison, WI

Jan 9, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 12 Michigan
Rivalry
W 81–67  12–4
(1–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Jan 13, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 14 No. 19 Minnesota W 71–55  13–4
(2–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Jan 16, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 14 at Illinois W 51–49  14–4
(3–1)
Assembly Hall 
Champaign, IL

Jan 21, 1999
, ESPN
No. 11 No. 14 Iowa W 80–65  15–4
(4–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Jan 24, 1999
, CBS
No. 11 at No. 18 Indiana W 73–59  16–4
(5–1)
Assembly Hall (17,436)
Bloomington, IN

Jan 27, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 8 No. 15 Ohio State W 76–71  17–4
(6–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Jan 30, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 8 Northwestern W 65–48  18–4
(7–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Feb 2, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 8 at Penn State W 70–68  19–4
(8–1)
Bryce Jordan Center (9,736)
University Park, PA

Feb 6, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 8 at No. 14 Iowa W 95–81  20–4
(9–1)
Carver–Hawkeye Arena (15,500)
Iowa City, IA

Feb 11, 1999
, ESPN
No. 5 Illinois W 61–44  21–4
(10–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Feb 13
7:00 pm, ESPN
No. 4 at No. 22 Minnesota W 84–82  22–4
(11–1)
Williams Arena (14,887)
Minneapolis, MN

Feb 16, 1999
, ESPN
No. 4 No. 17 Purdue W 82–69  23–4
(12–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Feb 18, 1999
, ESPN
No. 4 at Michigan
Rivalry
W 73–58  24–4
(13–1)
Crisler Arena (13,458)
Ann Arbor, MI

Feb 21, 1999
, ESPN Regional
No. 3 No. 13 Wisconsin W 56–51  25–4
(14–1)
Breslin Center (14,659)
East Lansing, MI

Feb 27, 1999
, CBS
No. 3 at No. 23 Purdue W 60–46  26–4
(15–1)
Mackey Arena (14,123)
West Lafayette, IN
Big Ten Tournament

Mar 5, 1999
(1) No. 2 vs. (8) Northwestern
quarterfinals
W 61–59  27–4
United Center 
Chicago, IL

Mar 6, 1999
(1) No. 2 vs. (4) No. 18 Wisconsin
semifinals
W 56–41  28–4
United Center 
Chicago, IL

Mar 7, 1999
(1) No. 2 vs. (11) Illinois
championship
W 67–50  29–4
United Center (19,581)
Chicago, IL
NCAA Tournament

Mar 12, 1999
, CBS
(1 MW) No. 2 vs. (16 MW) Mount St. Mary's
First Round
W 76–53  30–4
Bradley Center 
Milwaukee, WI

Mar 14, 1999
, CBS
(1 MW) No. 2 vs. (9 MW) Mississippi
Second Round
W 74–66  31–4
Bradley Center (18,525)
Milwaukee, WI

Mar 19, 1999
, CBS
(1 MW) No. 2 vs. (13 MW) Oklahoma
Sweet Sixteen
W 54–46  32–4
Edward Jones Dome 
St. Louis, MO

Mar 21, 1999
, CBS
(1 MW) No. 2 vs. (3 MW) No. 8 Kentucky
Elite Eight
W 73–66  33–4
Edward Jones Dome (42,519)
St. Louis, MO

Mar 27, 1999
, CBS
(1 MW) No. 2 vs. (1 E) No. 1 Duke
Final Four
L 62–68  33–5
Tropicana Field (41,340)
St. Petersburg, FL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time
Source[31][32].

Rankings

Ranking movement
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. (RV) Received votes but unranked. (NR) Not ranked.
Poll Pre Wk 2 Wk 3 Wk 4 Wk 5 Wk 6 Wk 7 Wk 8 Wk 9 Wk 10 Wk 11 Wk 12 Wk 13 Wk 14 Wk 15 Wk 16 Wk 17 Final
AP 5 5 7 9 14 14 15 13 12 14 11 8 8 5 4 3 2 2

Awards and honors

References

  1. "Temple Stuns No. 5 Michigan State, 60-59 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  2. "No. 4 Duke Holds on to Beat No. 9 MSU, 73-67 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  3. "Men's Basketball Falls to Top-Ranked UConn – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  4. "Men's Basketball Suffers Upset at the Hands of No. 24 Wisconsin – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  5. "UWBadgers.com – The Official Athletic Site of the Wisconsin Badgers – Men's Basketball". stats.uwbadgers.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  6. "No. 14 Michigan State Downs 19th Ranked Minnesota, 71-55 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  7. "Spartans Take over Sole Possession of First Place in Big Ten – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  8. "Spartans Down No. 18 Indiana – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  9. "Men's Basketball Downs No. 15 Ohio State – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  10. "Men's Hoops Downs No. 14 Iowa – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  11. "Spartan Cagers Win Thriller Over Minnesota – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  12. "No. 4 Michigan State Downs Purdue, 82-69 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  13. "Men's Hoops Falls to Fourth-Ranked Michigan State". www.purduesports.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  14. "Spartans Clinch Big Ten Regular Season Crown – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  15. "UWBadgers.com – The Official Athletic Site of the Wisconsin Badgers – Men's Basketball". stats.uwbadgers.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  16. "Men's Hoops Routs No. 23 Purdue – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  17. "Men's Hoops Falls to No. 3 Michigan State". www.purduesports.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  18. "Spartans Escape Big Ten Quarterfinal Scare – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  19. "Spartans Roll Over Wisconsin – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  20. "UWBadgers.com – The Official Athletic Site of the Wisconsin Badgers – Men's Basketball". stats.uwbadgers.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  21. "Michigan State Wins Big Ten Tournament – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  22. "Michigan State Passes First Round Test – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  23. 1 2 "Spartans Survive Battle with Ole Miss – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  24. "Spartans Defense Downs Sooners – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  25. "1999 OU Men's Basketball Season - SoonerStats.com - Oklahoma Sooners Football, Basketball, Baseball, and Softball Scores, Records, and Stats". www.soonerstats.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  26. "See You in St. Pete! – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  27. "1999 Michigan State vs. Kentucky Elite Eight". ncaa-basketball-tournament.pointafter.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  28. "Spartans Battle, Fall to Blue Devils – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  29. "1999 Duke vs. Michigan State Final Four". ncaa-basketball-tournament.pointafter.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
  30. "1998 Michigan State Spartans". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-04-21.
  31. http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/michigan-state/1999-schedule.html
  32. http://www.msuspartans.com/sports/m-baskbl/archive/98index.html
  33. 1 2 3 4 "Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-22.
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