Magic Johnson Sends Message to Tom Izzo After Michigan State's Historic Announcement
The No. 11 Michigan State Spartans mounted a strong comeback on Saturday night, overcoming a halftime deficit to defeat the Illinois Fighting Illini 79-65 with a dominant second-half performance.
Along with the victory, head coach Tom Izzo achieved a historic milestone, announced by both Michigan State and the Big Ten following the game.
Izzo, the long-time Spartans head coach, is now the all-time winningest coach in Big Ten history with 354 career wins, surpassing the legendary Bobby Knight—who Izzo has often cited as an influential figure in his coaching journey.
In the wake of this achievement, former Michigan State star and NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson shared a heartfelt message of congratulations to Izzo, recognizing his remarkable career and accomplishments as head coach of the Spartans since 1995.
"Cookie and I want to congratulate MSU’s Basketball Coach Izzo on his huge record-breaking 354th win last night over Illinois, passing Bobby Knight and becoming Big Ten’s most-winningest coach in history!" Johnson said. "I respect and admire him so much, and this achievement couldn't have happened to a better coach or person. Go green and Go White!"
Izzo is not only the all-time winningest coach in Big Ten history, but he also holds the longest active streak in college basketball with 26 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. With the Spartans improving to 20-5 on Saturday night and inching closer to the top 10 in the nation, it seems likely that streak will extend to 27 in just over a month.
Los Angeles Lakers legend Magic Johnson.
Denny Medley-Imagn Images
In addition to his tournament success, Izzo has led the Spartans to six Big Ten Tournament championships, an NCAA championship in 2000, and eight Final Four appearances. He has earned eight National Coach of the Year awards and boasts an all-time record of 727-299. Year after year, Izzo continues to further cement his place as one of the greatest coaches in the history of basketball.
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