Michigan State's clinching of the Big Ten championship came a little sooner than expected.
Second-place Ohio State, the prohibitive preseason favorite, got upset Sunday afternoon at home by Wisconsin, allowing the Spartans to wrap up at least a share of the regular-season conference title.
Michigan State can now clinch the outright championship by winning either Tuesday at Indiana or Sunday at home against Ohio State.
Following Saturday night's victory over Nebraska, with his team on the verge of clinching, MSU coach Tom Izzo said that this title "would probably be the most earned of all of them, if you think about it, other than maybe the first one (1997-98).
"Not that we came out of nowhere, but an unranked team (in the preseason), and deservedly so. It would mean a lot to me and I think it would mean a lot to them (the players)."
Michigan State entered the weekend with a one-game lead on both Ohio State and Michigan. Not only did the Buckeyes lose at home, so did the Wolverines, who got upset Saturday night by Purdue.
It all helped pave the way for the Spartans, who now have a two-game lead with two to play.
This is Izzo's seventh Big Ten regular-season title in his 17 seasons as MSU's coach, including the third in the last four years.
On Sunday night, after hearing about Ohio State's loss, Izzo said: “It’s kind of weird when you are at a practice and you find out that you’ve at least shared part of a Big Ten championship because we cherish those. I would admit that this year it wasn’t the first goal because we thought getting better every day was needed to even have a chance at a Big Ten championship.
"Now that part of it is there, the ultimate goal of any basketball, football team is to win an outright Big Ten championship. So I won’t lie -- we’re excited and proud of what’s been accomplished so far. ... But for right now, it’s just one more mile marker on our trip to the ultimate goal.”
Izzo's first title, 14 years ago, was a big surprise because the Spartans had finished 17-12, 9-9 and tied for sixth in the Big Ten the previous season. It was Izzo's third year as head coach, before all those Final Four appearances.
But this one also wasn't expected, not after last season's disappointing 19-15 finish. The Spartans, relying heavily on newcomers and players without much experience to start this season, were widely picked to finish behind Ohio State and Wisconsin.
Izzo, however, has gotten this team to peak in recent weeks, winning seven straight games in February. Senior captain Draymond Green's leadership has been invaluable.
"One game at a time," Green has been successfully preaching. "It feels good to put yourself one step closer, but as soon as you get satisfied, you lose two in a row. We just have to stay hungry and keep doing what we've been doing to win games."
Green could win Big Ten Player of the Year while Izzo is a top choice for Coach of the Year.
If the Spartans can win at least one of these final two games, it will assure them of their third outright title during the Izzo era. MSU also finished alone at the top in 1998-99 and 2008-09. The Spartans went on to the Final Four in both of those seasons.
Another victory also guarantees the No. 1 seed for the Big Ten tournament that begins March 8 in Indianapolis. Michigan State has been the top seed three times before, losing in the quarterfinals in 1998, winning the tournament in 1999 and losing in the semifinals in 2009.
