On Sunday, March 12th, 2023, Michigan State was selected to their 25th straight NCAA Tournament. Tom Izzo has stood at the helm of the Spartans, leading them to every tournament since 1998. The 25th is history making, as it is the longest streak of any head coach in the history of the NCAA Division 1-men’s basketball.

"For a quarter of a century, Tom Izzo has been synonymous with the NCAA Tournament." pic.twitter.com/ll1PoJ9tSe

— Michigan State Men's Basketball (@MSU_Basketball) March 12, 2023

Michigan State’s appearance in the 2023 NCAA Tournament, breaks Izzo’s tie with Mike Krzyzewski, who led the Blue Devils to the Tournament from 1996 to 2019. For Michigan State, they now have the third-longest streak in NCAA men’s basketball history behind Kansas, who has an active streak of 33 straight appearances.

The other team at the top of that list is North Carolina. They made the Tournament from 1975 to 2001 with Dean Smith at the helm.

Number of missed NCAA Tournaments since Tom Izzo’s 1st appearance (1998):

– Michigan State: 0
– Michigan: 13
– Illinois: 10
– Indiana: 9
– Ohio State: 8
– Purdue: 7
– Wisconsin: 3

— Justin Thind (@JustinThind) March 12, 2023

Tom Izzo led Michigan State to a national title in 2000. He has also led Michigan State to the Final Four on eight different occasions. Last season, Izzo passed former Indiana head coach Bob Knight as the winningest coach in the history of the Big Ten.

Izzo will no doubt be in the NCAA basketball hall of fame one day, leading the Spartans to an impressive 53-23 record in the NCAA Tournament in his career. This season has been especially impressive, with the Spartans lack of real NBA talent on the roster.

Favorable draw
Close to home for the first two rounds
Arguably the backcourt in the country

Don’t sleep on Tom Izzo and the Spartans. This team is ready to make a run. #GoGreen pic.twitter.com/R8zJ2ADIr9

— dunc 🌎 (@SpartyWRLD) March 12, 2023

The Michigan State Spartans went 19-12 this season. They will face USC in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, who went 22-10. Michigan State is the 7th seed, while USC is the 1oth seed.

The Spartans will have an uphill battle. The likes of AJ Hoggard, Tyson Walker, Malik Hall & Joey Hauser will look to lead the underdog team from Lansing. Tom Izzo, whose legacy is seemly already set in stone, will look to add another feather to his cap in 2023.