National outcry against Izzo, MSU hoops absolutely ridiculous

On By Littum

Ever since 2011, the Michigan State Spartans have faced off against either the Kansas Jayhawks, Duke Blue Devils or Kentucky Wildcats in the annual Champions Classic held at a neutral site. The showcase is a one-night-only event featuring back-to-back games between the four powerhouse programs.

However, Michigan State hasn’t had the best showing in the event. It is 5-9 at the meet, where the Spartans’ recent defeat at the hands of No. 1 The Jayhawks are stinging a little extra after a dismal shooting performance. Kansas is 9-5, Duke is 8-6 and Kentucky is 6-8.

The Spartans are also the only team in the event that has not won a national championship since its inception. Their 2000 title is the furthest away, despite being the last by a Big Ten team. The Spartans are getting calls to leave the competition, according to Spun’s Matt Hladik.

“There are about five teams that deserve to be in the Champions Classic over Michigan State,” college basketball podcaster Mark Titus said.

USA Today’s Dan Wolken wrote, “If college basketball is going to have an event called the Champions Classic, it might be a good idea to have teams that actually win championships. Time to start Michigan State and add UConn.”

The New York Post’s Zach Braziller wrote, “Maybe include the best program in the sport? The actual back-to-back champion? Michigan State doesn’t belong in this event anymore.”

Hladik even doesn’t think the Spartans’ time is over at the start of the November clash between blue bloods.

“At this point, it seems unlikely that Michigan State will get the boot unless the program falls off a cliff,” he wrote. “However, the calls to remove the Spartans from the Champions Classic will go nowhere as long as they remain on the path they have been on.”

The Spartans were one shot away from knocking off the top-ranked team in the nation.

The classic is huge for Spartan fans and a measuring stick for Izzo. Think of key performances that set the tone for entire seasons, such as the 2015 Champions Classic when Denzel Valentine dropped a 29-point triple-double against an elite Kansas Jayhawks team.

That performance instantly put the Spartans and Valentine on the map for a season in which they rose to the top of college basketball for a time (we won’t discuss the tournament, though).

The thing is – the Spartans have been the toast of the Big Ten throughout this century in all but a handful of seasons, the handful of times Michigan or Purdue have been successful. The Spartans are the conference representative.

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