Coach Izzo To Chat Live Friday!
10/31/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Oct. 31, 2001
EAST LANSING, Mich. - On Friday, Michigan State men's basketball coach Tom Izzo hits the ESPN.com moderated chat room to preview the upcoming college hoop season.
Now in his seventh year, Izzo has built quite an impressive resume with the Spartans: one NCAA Championship, four regular-season Big Ten Championships, two Big Ten Tournament titles, three Final Four appearances and three National Coach of the Year awards. Not bad.
In his six years directing the Spartan programs Izzo has bumped his career coaching record to 148-53. On top of that, 79 percent of his players who completed their eligibility also left with a degree. In 2001, all five of MSU's seniors received their diplomas. Izzo's 148 wins over his first six seasons are the fourth most by any coach in his first six seasons in the history of college basketball. His .736 winning percentage ranks eighth among active coaches. And as the games get even bigger in the NCAA Tournament, Izzo is at his best winning at a clip of .842 to lead all active coaches with at least 10 tournament games coached. He ranks fourth in the history of the game, ahead of such legends as John Wooden and Phog Allen.
Michigan State is coming off a season where they finished the year with a 28-5 record and a No. 3 ranking. The Spartans lost in the NCAA Tournament national semifinal to Arizona 80-61
Izzo won't hit chat until Friday at noon ET. Feel free to drop him some questions now and we'll save them for his arrival.
