The 2006–07 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

in the

2006–07 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 2006–07 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 7, 2006, progressed through the regular season and conference tournaments, and concluded with the 2007 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament championship game on Apr ...

. The head coach was

Tom Izzo Thomas Michael Izzo (, ; born January 30, 1955) is an American college basketball coach who has been the head coach at Michigan State University since 1995. On April 4, 2016, Izzo was elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. Izzo has le ...

who was in his 12th year. The team played home games at the

Breslin Center The Jack Breslin Student Events Center is a multi-purpose arena at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. The arena opened in 1989, and is named for Jack Breslin, MSU alumnus, former athlete and administrator, who first began pus ...

East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County, although a small portion extends north into Clinton County. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 47,741. The city is located immediate ...

. MSU finished the season 23–12, 8–8 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for seventh place. The Spartans received their tenth consecutive bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the Second Round to

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

Previous season

The

Spartans Sparta was a prominent city-state in Laconia in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (), while the name Sparta referred to its main settlement in the valley of Evrotas river in Laconia, in southeastern P ...

finished the 2005–06 season 22–12, 8–8 in Big Ten play to finish in sixth place. Michigan State received an at-large bid as a No. 6 seed to the NCAA tournament, their ninth straight trip to the Tournament, and lost in the First Round. The Spartans lost seniors Paul Davis (17.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game),

Maurice Ager Maurice Darnell Ager (born February 9, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans from 2002 until 2006. Ager led the Spartans to the NCAA Final Four as a junior in 200 ...

(19.3 points per game) and junior

Shannon Brown Shannon Brown (born November 29, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. He attended Proviso East High School in Maywood, Illinois, was named Illinois Mr. Basketball in 2003, and played college basketball for Michigan State ...

(17.2 points per game) to the

NBA draft The NBA draft is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) annual event, dating back to 1947 BAA draft, 1947, in which the teams in the league can Draft (sports), draft players who declare for the draft and that are Eligibility for the NBA dr ...

following the season.

Season summary

MSU was led by junior Drew Neitzel (18.1 points and 4.3 assist per game) and freshman Raymar Morgan (11.7 points and 5.2 rebounds per game).

Non-conference

MSU started the season well with wins over Brown, Youngstown State, and The Citidel in East Lansing. The Spartans then participated in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic held at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as the Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh and Eighth Avenue (Manhattan), Eig ...

where they edged out No. 19

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

in the semifinals on a Drew Neitzel last second basket. In the championship game, the Spartans lost on a controversial no-call of a shot clock violation allowing

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

to maintain their lead and hold off the Spartans 62–59. Wins over Vermont and Oakland at Breslin Center led to a loss at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

in the

ACC–Big Ten Challenge The ACC–Big Ten Challenge (or Big Ten–ACC Challenge as it was called in alternating years) was an in-season NCAA Division I men's college basketball series that matched up teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and the Big Ten Confer ...

. MSU closed the non-conference schedule strong, winning their last seven games. However, the Spartans finished the non-conference slate 1–2 in their only trips outside the state of Michigan in the non-conference schedule. MSU finished the non-conference schedule with a record of 13–2, but was not ranked in the polls.

Big Ten play

Following back-to-back losses to open the Big Ten season the prior year, the Spartans again suffered back-to-losses to open the season, this time on the road to

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

and

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

. The remaining Big Ten season was a roller coaster with a four-game winning streak immediately followed by a four-game losing streak and losses to Ohio State (ranked No. 4 and No. 5). A win against No. 1

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

highlighted the Big Ten season and likely assured the Spartans a trip to the NCAA Tournament. The Spartans finished 8–8 in the conference, finishing in a tie for seventh place. MSU lost to Wisconsin after beating Northwestern in the

Big Ten tournament Big Ten Tournament can refer to any Big Ten Conference sport that has a tournament or championship game: * Big Ten Football Championship Game * Big Ten men's basketball tournament * Big Ten women's basketball tournament * Big Ten baseball tournamen ...

NCAA Tournament

Helped by the win over No. 1 Wisconsin, the Spartans received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament for the 10th consecutive year, receiving a No. 9 seed, their lowest seed since

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

. A victory over Marquette, coached by former Izzo assistant

Tom Crean Tom or Thomas Crean may refer to: *Thomas Crean (1873–1923), Irish rugby union player, British Army soldier and doctor *Tom Crean (explorer) (1877–1938), Irish seaman and Antarctic explorer *Tom Crean (basketball) Thomas Aaron Crean (born Ma ...

, in the First Round of the Tournament was followed by a loss to No. 3

in the Second Round.

Roster

Schedule and results

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Player statistics

Source

Rankings

*''AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings.''

Awards and honors

* Drew Neitzel – All-Big Ten First Team * Drew Neitzel – USBWA All-District Team * Travis Walton – Big Ten All-Defensive Team * Drew Neitzel – AP All-American Honorable Mention

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2006-07 Michigan State Spartans Men's Basketball Team Michigan State Spartans men's basketball seasons

Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 Varsity team, varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan Army, Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the sc ...

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the ...

2006 in sports in Michigan 2007 in sports in Michigan