Michigan State Basketball

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo said Friday he's confident the 2020-21 college basketball season will take place despite the coronavirus pandemic.

Izzo discussed his reason for optimism during an appearance on 97.1 The Ticket in Detroit. The Spartans play in the Big Ten, which announced Tuesday all fall sports, including football, would be postponed until spring because of COVID-19 health and safety concerns.

"I think basketball guys will learn from football, and I'm close to my football guys and a lot of football guys in this country," he said. "We're gonna try to get ahead of it a little better. I 100 percent believe we're gonna play."

Izzo also said he's hopeful the remaining time before the college basketball season tips off in November will yield further support for safely playing sports.

The 65-year-old Michigan native said whether it's a vaccine or further advancement of saliva-based testing—Robinson Meyer and Alexis C. Madrigal of The Atlantic analyzed the potential benefits of frequent, widespread antigen tests Friday—three months is plenty of time for a significant breakthrough:

"I think there's a lot of things that are gonna happen. Ours is a little easier to manage. One, I don't know why, I just think there'll be a vaccine. I think they're testing, you guys hear about the saliva test that the NBA and I think the NFL is using, isn't quite FDA-approved, but it's getting close. I think there's a lot of things that could change in the weeks to come, and hopefully that'll advance us and we get a chance to learn."

Izzo noted the Spartans made it through a June camp without any positive COVID-19 tests and said he "can't think of any safer place" than the MSU athletic facility based on the standards put in place. They've also made clear to players the importance of following guidelines.

"The sacrifices these kids have made to get where they're at, I think now we gotta say, 'Hey, you know what, guys—you can't be the normal college student,'" he said. "But probably we've been saying that for 50 years: 'You can't do everything the normal student does.' And now it's just taken to a new level."

ESPN's Jeff Borzello reported Thursday there have been discussions about the potential for a college basketball "bubble," similar to what's being used by the NHL and NBA to finish their seasons.

NCAA President Mark Emmert hinted Thursday the organization may reduce the size of the 2021 NCAA tournament after the hallmark event was canceled this year because of the pandemic.

"Starting with 64 teams is tough," he said. "Thirty-two, OK, maybe that's a more manageable number."

Izzo has been the head coach at Michigan State since 1995. He's led the program to six Big Ten tournament titles, eight Final Four appearances and a national championship in 2000.

While things can change over the next two years, Tom Izzo is on the verge of landing the greatest recruiting class in Michigan State history. 

5-star center Enoch Boakye announced his intention to play for Izzo on Tuesday, joining consensus top prospect Emoni Bates to give the Spartans an early start at having the top class of 2022.

Boakye, who is 247Sports' No. 18 overall prospect, chose Michigan State over offers from Arizona, Oklahoma State and several other high-profile programs. The Canadian center is the country's top prospect in 2022 and the third-ranked player at the position.

Boakye said Izzo's first-hand involvement in his recruiting stood out—especially because it meant traveling to Canada to watch him.

"The fact that (Izzo) flew to Canada quite a few times to watch me play, even in a practice setting and that meant a lot,” Boakye said during his announcement. "And he's a head coach. Usually it’s the assistant coaches coming down to see you play. But as a head coach he took time to come see me and that meant a lot to me."

Boakye has one of the highest upsides of any 2022 player, provided he continues working on his skills. Gifted with a 6'10", 240-pound frame, Boakye will probably have an NBA-ready body by the time he sets foot on campus. He's also a springy athlete who should be able to anchor a defense immediately.

The biggest questions are whether Boakye will begin realizing his potential over the next two years and whether he'll even be forced to play college basketball. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has said the league plans to end the one-and-done rule at some point in the near future, and the league has already taken steps to give players a college alternative by introducing the G League Select for the 2020-21 season.

It's possible that Boakye will ultimately be able to turn pro out of high school, but for now, he's the latest coup in the strongest-ever recruiting run by Izzo. 

Max Christie is going to take the next step in his basketball career by playing for Tom Izzo at Michigan State, starting with the 2021-22 season.

Christie announced his decision Tuesday on Fox's College Hoops with Andy Katz, noting he's 100 percent committed to Michigan State and hasn't received any offers from the G League's pathway program:

The Illinois native has immediate impact potential because of his ability to score. He won a gold medal with Team USA at the FIBA U16 Championships in 2019 and averaged 25.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game as a sophomore at Rolling Meadows High School.

That skill set has rocketed him to the top of most recruiting rankings. He's a 5-star prospect, the No. 1 shooting guard and No. 13 overall player in the 2021 class, per 247Sports' composite rankings.

Brian Snow of 247Sports offered this assessment of Christie's talent:

"He has good size and length, and while he needs to get stronger, that will come in time. Right now is at his best as a shooter, where his height and long arms allow him to shoot over nearly every defender. But if a bigger player is on him, he is also athletic enough and good enough with the dribble to go past them. A highly skilled prospect who can play anywhere on the perimeter."

Izzo and his staff are putting on a recruiting clinic right now that should have other programs nervous about what the Spartans could look like. 

Emoni Bates, the top overall player in the 2022 class, announced last week on SportsCenter that he will be attending Michigan State. 

Christie becomes the second player in the 2021 recruiting cycle to commit to Michigan State. Pierre Brooks, rated as a 4-star prospect by 247Sports' composite rankings, announced in April he would play for the Spartans. 

Izzo is setting himself up well to have Michigan State back atop the Big Ten and competing for national titles coming off an occasionally frustrating 2019-20 season that saw the team finish with a 22-9 record.  

Michigan State men's basketball head coach Tom Izzo released a statement on Monday, saying he had a duty and an obligation to speak out against racism, to support former and current Black players and to not tolerate hatred at the university. 

"As white Americans, we sometimes think it's enough to say that we aren't racist," he wrote. "But that's selfish—that's just being worried about ourselves. In life, as in sports, the best leaders care about others, and influence others to act. Those of us in privileged positions must not stop using our platform to influence others to join and continue the fight."

You can read his full statement below:

That came in the wake of the university opening an investigation earlier in June against an employee in the Strategic Infrastructure Planning and Facilities department for writing racist posts on Facebook. In a separate investigation, a supervisor was fired by the university for making racist remarks. 

Izzo, 65, also changed his stance on Colin Kaepernick's decision in 2016 to take a knee during the playing of the national anthem before NFL games to protest racial discrimination and police brutality. In the aftermath of that protest, many athletes around the sporting world also took a knee.

Izzo had the team stand for the anthem, though they did wear warm-up shirts for certain games that said "We Talk, We Listen" on one side and "It's Not About Me, It's About Us" on the other.

He told 97.1 the Ticket's The Jaime and Stoney Show last week that speaking with current and former players during the current marches and gatherings around the nation in protest of those same issues helped him change his tune (h/t Andrew Brewster of Spartans Wire):

"Listen, I learn lessons, too. And I'm still learning at this age. I said to my team—I had a lot of Zoom calls, and then when we got 'em here, I met with them outside, legal or illegal, because I thought I had an obligation to talk to them. I had talked to some of our former players, from [Mateen] Cleaves to [Steve] Smith to [Greg] Kelser and Magic [Johnson], and all the guys before. and I did talk to all those people to try and get a good feel.

"And what I realized is I wasn't real happy with the Colin Kaepernick thing when it happened. I guess like a lot of people I looked at it as, what are we doing? The flag, all this stuff. And yet, as I look back on it, how ignorant am I? Because that was a peaceful protest."

Elite 2022 prospect Emoni Bates announced Monday on SportsCenter he has committed to Michigan State:

"They get all my respect," Bates said of the Spartans, via Jeff Borzello of ESPN. "I love how they coach, Coach [Tom] Izzo, I like how they focus on defense more than offense. On and off the court, he has passion. He's just an amazing guy, overall."

He will also finish his high school career at a prep school created by his father, Elgin Bates, per Borzello. It will run as a satellite campus to Aim High Academy in Michigan and all classes have been NCAA certified and approved.

Bates is considered the No. 1 overall basketball recruit in the class of 2022 by 247Sports composite rankings, while Borzello said he is considered "the best high school prospect in more than a decade."

The Michigan native has turned heads throughout his young career, winning the Gatorade National Player of the Year as a sophomore. He gained national attention when he scored 63 points in a game this season:

The 6'8" forward is already an elite scorer who can attack the rim or shoot from distance, giving him nearly unlimited upside. 

"He's very young and has a lot of maturing to do physically, but in my 20 years in this business he was as good as anybody I have ever seen as a freshman," Eric Bossi of Rivals said, per Rob Dauster of NBC Sports. "His skill level, athleticism and ability to create a shot are way beyond his years and he plays with a fire and alpha mentality you don't usually see in a 15 year old."

An NBA front office representative told Michael Rosenberg of Sports Illustrated the common comparison to Kevin Durant is "very realistic."

A recent poll of grassroots basketball experts ranked him tied for third as the best high school prospect since LeBron James, tying Derrick Rose and Anthony Davis. Only Kevin Durant and Greg Oden received more votes.

If Bates plays in college, it will be at Michigan State after a lengthy recruiting process.

"Coach [Tom] Izzo and coach [Mike] Garland and that entire MSU staff has been showing love since his seventh grade year. They've been very consistent," Elgin Bates, told ESPN's Borzello and Mark Schlabach.

However, there is still the chance Bates takes a different route after high school.

As Borzello noted, the forward indicated he would go straight to the NBA if the league changed its rules. He also provided some room for doubt in Monday's commitment.

"I don't know what the future will hold, but as of now I will be committing to Michigan State," he told SportsCenter, via Eric Lloyd of MLive.com.

Michigan State could have a superstar on the court when he gets to campus, but it remains to be seen whether he ever makes it to East Lansing.

Tom Izzo has changed his stance on Colin Kaepernick's protest of racial inequality and police brutality by taking a knee during the national anthem before NFL games in 2016. 

The Michigan State head coach appeared on 97.1 The Ticket's Jamie and Stoney Show and said conversations with former Spartans stars like Greg Kelser, Magic Johnson, Steve Smith and Mateen Cleaves helped him to reevaluate his prior stance that Kaepernick's protest was disrespectful to the military:

"Listen, I learn lessons, too. And I'm still learning at this age. I talked to all those people to try to get a good feel. And what I realized is, I wasn't real happy with the Colin Kaepernick thing when it happened. I guess like a lot of people I looked at it as, what are we doing? The flag, all this stuff. And yet, as I look back on it, how ignorant am I? Because that was a peaceful protest."

Izzo said Kaepernick's protest originally reminded him of people burning flags in protest during the 1960s:

"I went and looked up some pictures that I showed my players. There were a lot of white people and they weren't kneeling at the flag, they were burning it. And that really hit home for me. I said, 'I am into all the peaceful protests. I'm not into the burning, but I'm also trying to figure out how many times you have to try to get something done.'

"And yet, if there’s a silver (lining) in this someway, I've never seen so many white people, black people, Hispanic people marching together in the peaceful protests. To me, that is progress that I don't hope will continue, it has to continue." 

Another factor for Izzo changing his tune on Kaepernick's protest was the killing of George Floyd, who died after since-fired and since-arrested Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes while officers J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao—also fired and arrested after Floyd's death—did not intervene. 

"When I saw what I saw with George Floyd, it sickened me. I said it and it did. It was real and it was disappointing, but it was disgusting," he said. "None of us know all the things that happen, but a human life is a human life, and we're treating it like it's nothing."

When many athletes in sports took a knee in protest in the wake of Kaepernick's decision to do so, Izzo had his players stand for the anthem with their hands over their hearts. The team's players did wear warm-up shirts for some games that read "We Talk, We Listen" on the front and "It's Not About Me, It's About Us." 

Michigan State head basketball coach Tom Izzo and assistant coaches Dwayne Stephens and Mike Garland made contact with MSU student Brayden Smith, a witness to an alleged sexual assault by Spartans guard Brock Washington in 2017.

ESPN's Paula Lavigne and Nicole Noren reported Thursday that Izzo and his staff members reached out to Smith, the son of former MSU guard Steve Smith, before he had an opportunity to speak with police or school investigators about the allegation made by Rebecca Lambert.

Smith, who referred to the coaches as "godfathers" who'd check on him sporadically, said they "asked him what he knew and if he was OK," according to the Title IX report about the investigation into the alleged assault, which was said to have occurred on Aug. 28, 2017.

Michigan State spokesperson Emily Guerrant told ESPN the school reviewed the interactions between Izzo, Stephens, Garland and Smith for potential violations of rules regarding interference of an investigation.

"OIE [Office of Institutional Equity] did not feel those policies were violated in this situation," she said, referencing the prior relationship between Smith and the coaches.

Lavigne and Noren reported Sunday that another woman has said Washington raped her on Jan. 19 when she was too intoxicated to consent. Ingham County Prosecutor Carol Siemon told ESPN she declined to press charges because it "does not meet the burden of proof that we must present to a jury."

The woman told ESPN she's requested the Michigan Attorney General's office review the case.

Washington was suspended from the MSU basketball team Jan. 24, and he didn't make another appearance before the remainder of the season was canceled in March because of the coronavirus pandemic.

In 2018, Washington pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault on Lambert under a provision of the court not entering a judgment of conviction if he completed the terms of probation. The guilty plea also didn't come with the label of a sex crime, which Lambert told ESPN she agreed with.

"I thought that would be enough of a deterrence, pleading to assault," Lambert said, adding she would "feel bad" if it was on his record forever.

Lambert said she felt let down by Michigan State's response to the allegations after she told investigators Washington "grabbed her butt and moved his fingers toward her vagina without her consent," and she decided to transfer to another college as a result.

"OIE closed the investigation so quickly, and I felt like thrown to the curb by the school, so I didn't really want to be a part of that environment," she told Lavigne and Noren. "The school didn't seem to care about it. [Washington was] still playing on the basketball team. I didn't really want to be around that. It was just like a reminder."

The Michigan State police report stated Washington provided "contradictory statements" about the encounter during the investigation. Peter Samouris, one of Washington's two lawyers during the case, told ESPN the "2017 allegation was ridiculous."

Meanwhile, Lambert said she'd still like to hear from the longtime Michigan State coach Izzo.

"I'd like an apology [from Izzo]," she told ESPN. "I didn't lie. I tried to say something. ... It did me no good to report it through the school specifically. I didn't enjoy anything that happened; I don't know what benefit anyone really gets from reporting sexual assault."

A women who said she was sexually assaulted by Michigan State basketball player Brock Washington has asked the Michigan attorney general's office to investigate her case, according to Paula Lavigne and Nicole Noren of ESPN.

Michigan State University police had initially recommended charging Washington with first-degree criminal sexual conduct for what took place the night of Jan. 19, but the Ingham County Prosecutor's Office declined to file charges.

Washington has denied the charges but was suspended by the team and remained out for the remainder of the 2019-20 season.

"It's my understanding he's not going to be charged, and he doesn't wish to speak," Washington's previous attorney, Peter Samouris, said. "He's maintained his innocence 100 percent of the time."

Washington had also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault in 2018 resulting from a different sex crime investigation.

In the more recent case, the woman told prosecutors Washington had raped her because she was too intoxicated for consent.

Police interviewed her, a roommate, Washington and an Uber driver who took the woman home.

"If she [the woman] would have been by herself, there was no way I was gonna take her. Or I would have taken her to the hospital. I thought she was that drunk," the driver told police.

Despite the information in the police report, the woman was reportedly told by the prosecutor's office that she was "too intoxicated to prove that it [sexual contact] was forced," via Lavigne and Noren.

Washington, a walk-on who has appeared in 16 career games, remains enrolled in the school.

A 2018 report by Lavigne and Noren showed there was "a pattern of widespread denial, inaction and information suppression" from the Michigan State athletic department and others on campus regarding sexual assault, violence and gender discrimination complaints.

Xavier Tillman Sr. announced Tuesday he is leaving Michigan State for the 2020 NBA draft:

"With the support of my family and coaches I have decided to test the water and will enter my name in the 2020 NBA draft," the junior forward said. "It is important for me to gather as much information as possible before making this decision. Throughout the process I will be keeping my college eligibility."

Players have until June 15 at 5 p.m. ET to withdraw their names from the draft, which is scheduled for June 25.

Tillman made the All-Big Ten Second Team and the conference's All-Defensive Team after averaging a career-high 13.7 points, 10.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.1 blocks and 1.2 steals in 32.1 minutes per game across 31 starts.

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman ranked Tillman the 31st-best prospect in his top-50 big board earlier this month:

"The right fit and team could unlock and optimize Tillman's role-player qualities, including his passing, rebounding effort and defensive versatility. He's on track to join Tim Duncan and Bo Outlaw as the only NCAA players since 1992 to average at least 10 boards, three assists and two blocks. He also leads the nation in box plus-minus, which is another reason to look past how Tillman likely won't offer much as a scorer in the NBA."

The Spartans finished 22-9 with a No. 9 AP ranking in an abbreviated season. The NCAA tournament was canceled March 12 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

As the season wound down, Tillman posted consecutive double-doubles with 14 points and 12 rebounds against Maryland and 23 points and 15 rebounds against Penn State—both victories. Then, in what could be his final collegiate game, Tillman recorded 15 points, nine rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals in an 80-69 win over Ohio State.