By now you may already know the answer to this one, but can you name the most difficult loss of the Tom Izzo era? He confirmed which game that was on a recent podcast interview with Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports.
During an interview on Insider College Basketball Now, Izzo named the one loss that sticks with him the most and it’s not surprising to hear which game that is. It’s the loss to UConn in the 2014 Elite Eight.
The Spartans led by as many as nine points in the second half of the eventual loss to the Huskies in the Elite Eight. The game was within one possession in the final few minutes before UConn pulled away to reach the Final Four. The Huskies would go on to win the national championship that season.
This game has often been referred to fans as one of the hardest losses of the Izzo era as well. It felt like that was arguably Izzo’s best team to not reach a Final Four, and quite frankly, the best team he had to not win the whole thing too.
On the flip side, Izzo also shared that the win that brought the most pure elation was the upset of Duke in the Elite Eight in 2019. This is with the caveat that it couldn’t include any Final Four games.
The Spartans were considered sizable underdogs in that matchup and ultimately shocked Zion Williamson and the Blue Devils to reach the 2019 Final Four. Ironically, that 2019 Spartans team also felt like one of Izzo’s other best teams to come up short in winning his second national championship.
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This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Spartans head coach Tom Izzo names most difficult loss, memorable win of his career
Reporting by Robert Bondy, Spartans Wire / Spartans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
