Tom Izzo shouts out Nick Saban’s favorite phrase even after a win
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Tom Izzo and Michigan State are annually one of the top teams in college basketball. The 2021-22 season has been no different as the 10th-ranked Spartans entered Wednesday with a 10-2 mark.
And that record improved to 11-2 as they defeated High Point, led by Tubby Smith, by a final of 81-68. The Spartans were led by Gabe Brown and Joey Hauser, who dropped in 24 and 17 points, respectively.
But Izzo wasn’t happy with his team’s performance even with it missing a few players from the lineup. His main source of frustration was High Point’s 3-point shooting as the Panthers went 52.6 percent from beyond the arc, sinking 10 of their 19 attempts.
During a postgame interview with the Big Ten Network, Izzo hinted at a tough practice session for his team on Thursday while borrowing a phrase Alabama fans are all too familiar with—feeling that his team lacked focus due to reveling in positive media attention.
“My good friend Nick Saban talks about rat poison, you know what I mean?” Izzo said. “I think we’ve got a little rat poison in us right now, so we gotta change it up a little bit. That’s 2 games in a row where we haven’t guarded anybody…
“The guys that did play didn’t play well enough, so maybe we can get back now to who we are instead of having everybody hug and kiss us.”
Michigan State returns to the court on Sunday as it takes on Northwestern in a B1G clash in Evanston, Ill.
"I think we got a little 'Rat Poison' in us right now"
Don't think Michigan State's practice is going to be fun tomorrow ? pic.twitter.com/hsxt0ov9wx
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) December 29, 2021
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
