1995–96 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

1995–96 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball
1995–96 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball
NIT, Second round
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	16–16 (9–9 Big Ten)
Head coach	Tom Izzo (1st season);
Assistant coaches	Stan Joplin (5th season); Brian Gregory (4th season); Tom Crean (1st season);
Captains	Quinton Brooks; Jamie Feick;
Home arena	Breslin Center
	Seasons ← 1994–95 1996–97 →

1995–96 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Indiana^[a]	13	–	5	.722	20	–	11	.645
No. 18 Penn State	12	–	6	.667	21	–	7	.750
No. 21 Iowa^[b]	12	–	6	.667	24	–	8	.750
Minnesota^[c]	11	–	7	.611	20	–	10	.667
Wisconsin^[d]	9	–	9	.500	18	–	14	.563
Michigan State	9	–	9	.500	16	–	16	.500
Illinois	7	–	11	.389	18	–	13	.581
No. 4 Purdue^[e]	6	–	12	.333	7	–	23	.233
Ohio State^[f]	5	–	13	.278	12	–	15	.444
Northwestern^[g]	4	–	14	.222	9	–	18	.333
Michigan^[h]	1	–	8	.111	1	–	10	.091

Rankings from AP Poll Records above are after NCAA sanctions against Minnesota, Purdue, and Michigan as noted:^[1] ^ Indiana adjusted from 12–6, 19–12 ^ Iowa adjusted from 11–7, 23–9 ^ Minnesota adjusted from 10–8, 19–13 (vacated 2 games) ^ Wisconsin adjusted from 8–10, 17–15 ^ Purdue adjusted from 15–3, 26–6 (forfeit 18 wins, vacated 2 games) ^ Ohio State adjusted from 3–15, 10–17 ^ Northwestern adjusted from 2–16, 7–20 ^ Michigan adjusted from 10–8/21–11 (vacated 21 games)

The 1995–96 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 1995–96 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team played their home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan and were members of the Big Ten Conference. They were coached by Tom Izzo in his first year as head coach after 11 years as an assistant coach. The Spartans finished the season with a record of 16–16, 9–9 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for fifth place. They received a bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated Washington before losing to Fresno State in the second round.

The season marked the last time, as of 2023, that Michigan State did not finish the season with a winning record.

Previous season

The Spartans finished the 1994–95 season with a record of 22–6, 14–4 in Big Ten play to finish in second place. Michigan State received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament as the No. 3 seed in the Southeast region where they lost to Weber State in the first round.

Roster and statistics

1995–96 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team
Name	Class	Pos	Height	Summary
Damion Beathea	SR	F	6'7"	5.9 Pts, 3.1 Reb, 1.0 Ast
Quinton Brooks	SR	F	6'7"	16.3 Pts, 5.6 Reb, 0.6 Ast
Jamie Feick	SR	C	6'9"	10.1 Pts, 9.5 Reb, 2.3 Ast
Jon Garavaglia	JR	F	6'9"	5.1 Pts, 4.5 Reb, 1.1 Ast
David Hart	SR	G	6'4"	0.0 Pts, 0.3 Reb, 0.5 Ast
Thomas Kelley	SO	G	6'2"	5.1 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 3.6 Ast
Jason Klein	FR	G	6'7"	2.1 Pts, 1.1 Reb, 0.3 Ast
Anthony Mull	JR	G	6'4"	2.8 Pts, 1.0 Reb, 0.3 Ast
Steve Nicodemus	SR	G	6'4"	0.7 Pts, 0.4 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Morris Peterson	FR	F	6'7"	0.5 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.5 Ast
Steve Polonowski	JR	F	6'9"	0.5 Pts, 0.6 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Mike Respert	JR	G	5'11"	2.4 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 0.8 Ast
Antonio Smith	FR	F	6'8"	4.3 Pts, 4.0 Reb, 0.4 Ast
Ray Weathers	JR	G	6'3"	9.7 Pts, 3.0 Reb, 2.3 Ast
^[2]

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Non-conference regular season
Nov 20, 1995*	at Chaminade Maui Invitational Tournament	W 69–66	1–0	Lahaina Civic Center Maui, HI
Nov 21, 1995*	vs. No. 20 North Carolina Maui Invitational Tournament semifinals	L 70–92	1–1	Lahaina Civic Center Maui, HI
Nov 22, 1995*	Santa Clara Maui Invitational Tournament third place game	L 71–77^[3]	1–2	Lahaina Civic Center Maui, HI
Nov 28, 1995*	at No. 25 Arkansas Great Eight	W 75–72	2–2	The Palace of Auburn Hills Auburn Hills, MI
Dec 2, 1995*	at No. 18 Louisville	L 59–79	2–3	Freedom Hall Louisville, KY
Dec 6, 1995*	Evansville	W 67–63	3–3	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Dec 10, 1995*	Detroit Mercy	L 61–63	3–4	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Dec 16, 1995*	at Kansas State	W 67–64	4–4	Bramlage Coliseum Manhattan, KS
Dec 18, 1995*	at Oklahoma State	L 57–68	4–5	Gallagher-Iba Arena Stillwater, OK
Dec 21, 1995*	East Tennessee State	W 63–57	5–5	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Dec 29, 1995*	Central Michigan Oldsmobile Spartan Classic	L 62–69	5–6	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Dec 30, 1995*	Idaho State Oldsmobile Spartan Classic	W 68–55	6–6	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Big Ten regular season
Jan 4, 1996	Indiana	W 65–60	7–6 (1–0)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Jan 6, 1996	at No. 13 Illinois	W 68–58	8–6 (–0)	Assembly Hall Champaign, IL
Jan 13, 1996	at No. 23 Michigan Rivalry	L 54–76	8–7 (2–1)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Jan 17, 1996	at Wisconsin	L 48–61	8–8 (2–2)	Kohl Center Madison, WI
Jan 20, 1996	No. 16 Iowa	W 62–60	9–8 (3–2)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Jan 24, 1996	Northwestern	W 68–54	10–8 (4–2)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Jan 27, 1996	at Minnesota	W 68–54	11–8 (5–2)	Williams Arena Minneapolis, MN
Jan 31, 1996	No. 10 Penn State	W 61–58	12–8 (6–2)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Feb 3, 1996	at No. 17 Purdue	L 51–56	12–9 (6–3)	Mackey Arena West Lafayette, IN
Feb 7, 1996	Ohio State	W 55–41	13–9 (7–3)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Feb 10, 1996	at No. 10 Penn State	L 50–54	13–10 (7–4)	Rec Hall University Park, PA
Feb 14, 1996	Minnesota	L 63–64	13–11 (7–5)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Feb 17, 1996	at Northwestern	W 75–57	14–11 (8–5)	Welsh-Ryan Arena Evanston, IL
Feb 21, 1996	at No. 18 Iowa	L 47–83	14–12 (8–6)	Carver-Hawkeye Arena Iowa City, IA
Feb 24, 1996	Wisconsin	L 52–73	14–13 (8–7)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Feb 27, 1996	at Michigan Rivalry	L 46–75	14–14 (8–8)	Crisler Arena Ann Arbor, MI
Mar 6, 1996	Illinois	W 77–67	15–14 (9–8)	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Mar 10, 1996	at Indiana	L 53–57	15–15 (9–9)	Assembly Hall Bloomington, IN
NIT
Mar 12, 1996*	Washington first round	W 64–50^[4]	16–15	Breslin Center East Lansing, MI
Mar 19, 1996*	at Fresno State second round	L 63–68	16–16	Selland Arena Fresno, CA
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll, (#) denotes seed within region. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time Source^[5].

References

^ "Division I Records" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. p. 56. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
^ "1995-96 Michigan State Spartans Roster and Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
^ "MAUI INVITATIONAL : Villanova Wins Title, 77-75". The Los Angeles Times. November 23, 1995. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
^ "Michigan State defense handles Huskies, 64-50". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. March 14, 1996. p. 3D.
^ "1995-96 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 9, 2018.

[1] Indiana adjusted from 12–6, 19–12

[2] Iowa adjusted from 11–7, 23–9

[3] Minnesota adjusted from 10–8, 19–13 (vacated 2 games)

[4] Wisconsin adjusted from 8–10, 17–15

[5] Purdue adjusted from 15–3, 26–6 (forfeit 18 wins, vacated 2 games)

[6] Ohio State adjusted from 3–15, 10–17

[7] Northwestern adjusted from 2–16, 7–20

[8] Michigan adjusted from 10–8/21–11 (vacated 21 games)

[DIR56-9] "Division I Records" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. p. 56. Retrieved March 16, 2021.

[10] "1995-96 Michigan State Spartans Roster and Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 9, 2018.

[11] "MAUI INVITATIONAL : Villanova Wins Title, 77-75". The Los Angeles Times. November 23, 1995. Retrieved December 28, 2022.

[12] "Michigan State defense handles Huskies, 64-50". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. March 14, 1996. p. 3D.

[13] "1995-96 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 9, 2018.

[a]

[b]

[c]

[d]

[e]

[f]

[g]

[h]

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

v t e Michigan State Spartans men's basketball
Venues	Armory (1899–1918) IM Circle (1918–1930) Demonstration Hall (1930–1940) Jenison Fieldhouse (1940–1989) Breslin Student Events Center (1989–present)
Rivalries	Michigan
Culture & lore	Basketbowl Champions Classic "The Flintstones" Izzone Michigan State University student riots
People	Head coaches NBA players Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1898–99 1899–1900 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024-25
NCAA national championships in bold; NCAA Final Four appearances in italics