From the Wire: Michigan State
Cash Kruth, Alex Altman and their State News colleagues pick up the pieces after the Spartans’ season came to an abrupt ending:
Same two teams. Same venue. Same sad story for the MSU men’s basketball team. Four months after thumping the Spartans by 35 points at Ford Field, North Carolina came back to the Motor City on Monday night and reaffirmed that it is the best team in the nation, as the Tar Heels throttled MSU 89-72 to claim the 2009 NCAA national championship.
“They played well and I guess I was disappointed,” MSU head coach Tom Izzo said. “We turned it over early, we missed some shots early and we didn’t check very well. They got off to that 24-7 lead and that’s the way it stayed. We couldn’t really dig into it.”
Altman writes the Spartans have nothing to be ashamed of:
For [Kalin] Lucas, winning Monday’s national championship game against North Carolina was about much more than bringing a banner to the school stitched across his green jersey. It was about bringing hope to a city and joy to a state that’s been wrought by the economy like a natural disaster.
Although he might not see it now, Lucas has done exactly that.
There’s absolutely no shame in MSU’s 89-72 loss to North Carolina. As ugly, lopsided and painful as it was at times, the Spartans should reflect back at this game, this tournament, and this season with nothing but feelings of fulfillment.
Michigan State’s top perimeter defender struggled to stay with Wayne Ellington:
Before the start of Monday’s game, North Carolina guard Wayne Ellington said he and MSU senior guard Travis Walton were immersed in some friendly trash talk.
As soon as the ball was tipped, Ellington was anything but friendly. The junior guard scored 19 points against the Spartans, helping North Carolina claim the national championship with a 89-72 victory over MSU at Ford Field.
Ellington, who finished 7-of-12 from the field, including 3-for-3 from 3-point range, was named the Final Four’s Most Outstanding Player.
Saying goodbye to a strong class of seniors:
Even though his dream of joining Earvin “Magic” Johnson and Mateen Cleaves in MSU lore didn’t come true, Walton said he was surprisingly content after the loss.
“I don’t feel bad. I thought I was going to be crying and not be able to talk to people. I don’t feel bad at all, I feel great,” Walton said. “I feel like it’s a blessing that I made it here. Nobody ever gave us a chance. Only two teams in America were left in the tournament, so in the rankings we’re going to be the second-best team in the nation, and nobody picked us to be that.”
The same feeling was present throughout the MSU locker room early Tuesday morning, even for the four seniors — Idong Ibok, Marquise Gray, Goran Suton and Walton — who played their final game in an MSU uniform.
Michigan State fans came out for their team at Breslin Center but avoided any major disturbances after the loss. No doubt few wanted to raise hell in the streets in 29-degree weather.
