On Sunday afternoon, the No. 11 Syracuse Orange shocked the basketball world with an upset win over the No. 3 Michigan State Spartans — a disappointing end to a tumultuous season for MSU.
The emotion was palpable as the downtrodded Michigan State Spartans walked off the court following their 55-53 upset loss to the Syracuse Orange in Sunday’s NCAA Tournament Second Round matchup.
Michigan State walks off the court, with Miles Bridges lifting his jersey, and Jaren Jackson fighting tears. pic.twitter.com/xrveb6tyJP
— Brad Galli (@BradGalli) March 18, 2018
No one would expect a No. 3 seed to take an upset by a No. 11 seed well, but you also can’t say that the Spartans weren’t complicit in their own heartbreak on Sunday.
Michigan State played a very, very bad brand of basketball against Syracuse. According to ESPN Stats & Info, the Spartans’ 53 points “are tied for the [third] fewest scored in an NCAA Tournament game under Tom Izzo.”
The Spartans could not attack the zone to save their lives. There was a point in the second half where MSU went 0-of-13 and failed to put points on the board for more than five minutes.
Izzo, Cassius Winston and Miles Bridges held a presser after the game and it went about as you’d expect.
.@MSU_Basketball reflects on its Second Round loss to @Cuse_MBB. #MarchMadness https://t.co/TsrtVOWxmC
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 18, 2018
“This is probably the saddest I’ve ever been in my life,” Bridges said.
You can’t help but feel that the Spartans’ incredible talent on the court in recent years has been wasted; as Jeff Potrykus pointed out, Michigan State has earned a top-three seed going back to 2012 and failed to advance to the Sweet Sixteen in any of those years:
No. 3 Michigan State ousted by No. 11 Syracuse. MSU since 2012 has been seeded No. 1, No. 2 or No. 3 a total of four times. Spartans have failed to advance past Sweet 16 in each of those seasons.
— Jeff Potrykus (@jaypo1961) March 18, 2018
Sure, the players didn’t execute well today. But you also have to heap a fair serving of the blame on the shoulders of Coach Izzo, whose seat is warming up exponentially.
Izzo failed these students today, much as the program has all season as an abuse scandal hangs over it like a dark cloud.
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So let them wallow. They may not have earned a berth to the Sweet Sixteen, but they at least earned that.