EAST LANSING — Even with a plane to New York and the Sweet 16 waiting for him, Tom Izzo kept revisiting Michigan State basketball’s two-minute disaster at Iowa.
And just how important that regulation collapse and 112-106 overtime loss to the Hawkeyes on Feb. 25 has molded the Spartans since.
Particularly during timeouts in the close-out stage of Sunday’s 69-60 NCAA tournament win over Marquette in Columbus, Ohio. How the Spartans kept discussing the focus on details that betrayed them a month ago, about not giving up a 3-pointer, about playing tough inside, about boxing out on free throws.