1998–99 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

Previous season

The Spartans finished the 1997–98 season 22–8, 13–3 in Big Ten play to earn a share of the Big Ten regular season championship. They lost in the quarterfinals of the inaugural Big Ten tournament to Minnesota. Michigan State received an at-large bid as a No. 4 seed in the NCAA tournament, their first trip to the Tournament under Tom Izzo. They defeated Eastern Michigan and Princeton to advance to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to No. 1-seeded North Carolina.

Season summary

The Spartans, fresh off their first trip to the Sweet Sixteen since 1990, started the season ranked No. 5 in the country. Michigan State was led by juniors Mateen Cleaves (11.7 points and 7.2 assists per game) and Morris Peterson (13.6 points and 5.7 rebounds per game).

The Spartans played three top seven teams in their first seven games. MSU lost all three: at No. 7 Temple, versus No. 4 Duke at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, and at No. 1 Connecticut. However, the Spartans finished the non–conference season without another loss and a record of 11–3 while ranked No. 14 in the country.

After losing their first Big Ten game to No. 24 Wisconsin, the Spartans won the remaining 15 games in conference. The wins included wins against No. 19 Minnesota, No. 14 Iowa, at No. 18 Indiana, No. 15 Ohio State, at No. 14 Iowa, at No. 22 Minnesota, No. 17 Purdue, No. 14 Wisconsin, and at No. 23 Purdue. The Spartans won the Big Ten conference regular season by three games with a record of 15–1. MSU finished the regular season ranked No. 2 in the country. (Ohio State, who finished in second place with a 12–4 record, was later forced to vacate 29 games including all conference wins.)

The Spartans earned the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten tournament and faced Northwestern in the quarterfinals. MSU struggled in the game and appeared to be headed toward a second-straight early exit from only the second-ever Big Ten tournament, but Matteen Cleaves hit a clutch shot with 37 second remaining to give MSU a two-point win. In the semifinals, MSU faced No. 19 Wisconsin, the only team that had beaten MSU in the regular season. The Spartans held Wisconsin scoreless for nearly 11 minutes in the second half on their way to 56–41 win. The win propelled the Spartans to the championship game against Cinderalla Illinois, who had finished last in conference, but had made a run to the championship game. With MSU looking to lock up a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and Illinois looking to simply make the Tournament with a win, the Spartans blew out the Illini 67–50 to win their first Big Ten tournament championship. The win gave the Spartans the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

The Spartans were awarded a No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region. In a First Round victory over Mount St. Mary's, MSU used tough defense to hold off the Mountaineers, 76–53. In the Second Round, the Spartans faced No. 9-seeded Mississippi. Michigan State used a late 13–0 run to hold off the upset and defeat the Rebels, 73–66. Cleaves led the Spartans with 18 points as they advanced to their second straight Sweet Sixteen. In the Sweet Sixteen, No. 13-seeded Oklahoma pushed the Spartans and MSU struggled offensively. However, Andre Hutson's 13 points led the Spartans to hard-fought 54–46 win, their 21st straight win. In the Elite Eight for the first time since winning the championship since 1979, MSU faced No. 3-seeded and No. 8-ranked Kentucky. Michigan State trailed by as many 13 points early in the contest, but they fought back to beat Kentucky 73–66 to advance to the Final Four. There, they were re-matched against the overall No. 1 seed, Duke, who had defeated them 73–67 early in the season. With the Spartans riding a 22-game winning streak, Duke was able to beat the Spartans 68–62, ending their season.

Roster and statistics

Schedule and results

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Rankings

Awards and honors

• Mateen Cleaves – All-America selection
• Mateen Cleaves – Big Ten Player of the Year
• Mateen Cleaves – All-Big Ten First Team
• Mateen Cleaves – Chicago Tribune Silver Basketball
• Mateen Cleaves – Most Outstanding Player, Big Ten Conference Basketball Tournament
• Morris Peterson – All-Big Ten First Team
• Antonio Smith – All-Big Ten Third Team

References

References

1. (2006-03-10). "OSU gets probation".
2. "Temple Stuns No. 5 Michigan State, 60-59 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
3. "No. 4 Duke Holds on to Beat No. 9 MSU, 73-67 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
4. "Men's Basketball Falls to Top-Ranked UConn – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
5. "Men's Basketball Suffers Upset at the Hands of No. 24 Wisconsin – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
6. "UWBadgers.com – The Official Athletic Site of the Wisconsin Badgers – Men's Basketball".
7. "No. 14 Michigan State Downs 19th Ranked Minnesota, 71-55 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
8. "Spartans Take over Sole Possession of First Place in Big Ten – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
9. "Spartans Down No. 18 Indiana – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
10. "Men's Basketball Downs No. 15 Ohio State – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
11. "Men's Hoops Downs No. 14 Iowa – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
12. "Spartan Cagers Win Thriller Over Minnesota – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
13. "No. 4 Michigan State Downs Purdue, 82-69 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
14. "Men's Hoops Falls to Fourth-Ranked Michigan State".
15. "Spartans Clinch Big Ten Regular Season Crown – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
16. "UWBadgers.com – The Official Athletic Site of the Wisconsin Badgers – Men's Basketball".
17. "Men's Hoops Routs No. 23 Purdue – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
18. "Men's Hoops Falls to No. 3 Michigan State".
19. "Spartans Escape Big Ten Quarterfinal Scare – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
20. "Spartans Roll Over Wisconsin – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
21. "UWBadgers.com – The Official Athletic Site of the Wisconsin Badgers – Men's Basketball".
22. "Michigan State Wins Big Ten tournament – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
23. "Michigan State Passes First Round Test – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
24. "Spartans Survive Battle with Ole Miss – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
25. "Spartans Defense Downs Sooners – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
26. "1999 OU Men's Basketball Season - SoonerStats.com - Oklahoma Sooners Football, Basketball, Baseball, and Softball Scores, Records, and Stats".
27. "See You in St. Pete! – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
28. (September 2018). "1999 Michigan State vs. Kentucky Elite Eight".
29. "Spartans Battle, Fall to Blue Devils – Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
30. (September 2018). "1999 Duke vs. Michigan State Final Four".
31. "1998 Michigan State Spartans".
32. "1998-99 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results".
33. "Michigan State Official Athletic Site".
34. "Michigan State Official Athletic Site".