2005–06 record 22–12 (8–8 Big Ten) | ||
Assistant coach Dwayne Stephens (3rd year) | ||
The 2005–06 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 2005–06 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Their head coach was Tom Izzo, who was in his 11th year at Michigan State. The team played its home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan, and competed in the Big Ten Conference. MSU finished the season with a record of 22–12, 8–8 to finish in a tied for sixth place in Big Ten play. They received a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the ninth consecutive year and lost in the First Round to George Mason.
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Previous season
The Spartans finished the 2004–05 season with a record of 26–7, 13–3 to finish in second place in the Big Ten. Michigan State received a #5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, their 8th straight trip to the Tournament, and advanced to the Final Four, their fourth trip under Tom Izzo.
The Spartans lost Alan Anderson (13.2 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 1.7 APG), Kelvin Torbert (9.5 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 1.5 APG) and Chris Hill (8.8 PPG, 1.8 RPG, 4.2 APG) to graduation following the season.
Season summary
The Spartans were led by seniors, Paul Davis (17.5 Pts, 9.1 Reb, 1.6 Ast) and Maurice Ager (19.3 Pts, 4.1 Reb, 2.5 Ast), and junior Shannon Brown (17.2 Pts, 4.4 Reb, 2.7 Ast). The Spartans began the season ranked No. 4 in the country. They started by making a trip to Hawaii to participate in the Maui Classic. Before playing in the Classic, however, they played Hawaii and were shocked, losing 62–84. After beating host Chaminade in the Maui Classic, they played No. 8 Gonzaga led by Adam Morrison in the tournament semifinals. The game was an instant classic lasting into triple overtime where the Spartans fell 106–109. In the third place game, the Spartans defeated No. 9 Arizona. The Spartans won their remaining ten non-conference games, including a win over No. 6 Boston College in the Jimmy V Classic, to finish the non-conference schedule at 12–2 and ranked No. 7 in the country.
The Spartans began the Big Ten season with back-to-back losses to No. 6 Illinois and Wisconsin. They followed those up with wins over No. 9 Indiana, No. 19 Ohio State in double overtime, and No. 23 Iowa. However, Michigan State finished the conference season losing five of their last seven games. MSU finished the Big Ten regular season with a conference record of 8–8, 20–10 overall, and slipping out of the polls. In the Big Ten Tournament, MSU defeated Purdue and No. 9 Illinois before being defeated by No. 20 Iowa in the semifinals.
The Spartans received an at-large bid as a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, their ninth consecutive trip to the Tournament. In the Tournament, they lost to eventual Final Four Cinderella, George Mason, in the First Round.
Following the season, Shannon Brown declared for the NBA Draft, leaving the Spartans one year prior to graduation, just the fourth player under Izzo to declare early.
Player statistics
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Rankings
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