2005–06 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

The 2005–06 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 2005–06 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Their head coach was Tom Izzo, who was in his 11th year at Michigan State. The team played its home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan, and competed in the Big Ten Conference. MSU finished the season with a record of 22–12, 8–8 in Big Ten play to finish in a tie for sixth place. As the No. 6 seed in the Big Ten Tournament, they defeated Purdue and Illinois before losing to Iowa in the semifinals. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament as the No. 6 seed in the Washington D.C. bracket, marking the school's ninth consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament under Izzo. They lost in the First Round to eventual Final Four participant, George Mason.

2005–06 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball
NCAA Tournament, First Round
Conference	Big Ten Conference
2005–06 record	22–12 (8–8 Big Ten)
Head coach	Tom Izzo (11th season)
Assistant coaches	Mark Montgomery (5th season) Dwayne Stephens (3rd season) Jim Boylen (1st season)
Captains	Maurice Ager Shannon Brown Paul Davis Delco Rowley
Home arena	Breslin Center

2005–06 Big Ten Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 6 Ohio State	12	–	4		.750			26	–	6		.813
No. 15 Iowa †	11	–	5		.688			25	–	9		.735
No. 13 Illinois	11	–	5		.688			26	–	7		.788
Wisconsin	9	–	7		.563			19	–	12		.613
Indiana	9	–	7		.563			19	–	12		.613
Michigan State	8	–	8		.500			22	–	12		.647
Michigan	8	–	8		.500			22	–	11		.667
Penn State	6	–	10		.375			15	–	15		.500
Northwestern	6	–	10		.375			14	–	15		.483
Minnesota	5	–	11		.313			16	–	15		.516
Purdue	3	–	13		.188			9	–	19		.321
† 2006 Big Ten Tournament winner As of March 14, 2006; Rankings from AP Poll[1]

Previous season

The Spartans finished the 2004–05 season with a record of 26–7, 13–3 in Big Ten play to finish in second place. Michigan State received a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament, their eighth straight trip to the Tournament, and advanced to the Final Four, their fourth trip under Tom Izzo.

The Spartans lost Alan Anderson (13.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game), Kelvin Torbert (9.5 points per game) and Chris Hill (8.8 points and 4.2 assists per game) to graduation following the season.

Season summary

The Spartans were led by seniors Paul Davis (17.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game) and Maurice Ager (19.3 points per game), as well as junior Shannon Brown (17.2 points per game).

The Spartans began the season ranked No. 4 in the country. They started by making a trip to Hawaii to participate in the Maui Classic. Before playing in the Classic, however, they played Hawaii and were shocked, losing 84–62.[2] After beating host Chaminade in the Maui Classic,[3] they played No. 8 Gonzaga led by Adam Morrison in the tournament semifinals. The game was an instant classic lasting into triple overtime where the Spartans fell 109–106.[4] In the third place game, the Spartans defeated No. 9 Arizona.[5] The Spartans won their remaining ten non-conference games, including a win over No. 6 Boston College in the Jimmy V Classic,[6] to finish the non-conference schedule at 12–2 and ranked No. 7 in the country.

The Spartans began the Big Ten season with back-to-back losses to No. 6 Illinois[7] and Wisconsin.[8] They followed those up with wins over No. 9 Indiana,[9] No. 19 Ohio State in double overtime,[10] and No. 23 Iowa.[11] However, Michigan State finished the conference season losing five of their last seven games. MSU finished the Big Ten regular season with a conference record of 8–8, 20–10 overall, and slipping out of the polls. In the Big Ten Tournament, MSU defeated Purdue[12] and No. 9 Illinois[13] before losing to No. 20 Iowa in the semifinals.[14]

The Spartans received an at-large bid as a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament, their ninth consecutive trip to the Tournament. In the Tournament, they lost to eventual Final Four Cinderella, No. 11-seeded George Mason, in the First Round.[15]

Following the season, Shannon Brown declared for the NBA Draft, leaving the Spartans one year prior to graduation, just the fourth player under Izzo to declare early.[16][17]

Roster

2005–06 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown F 10 Jason Aerts 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Aquinas College Pentwater, Michigan G 13 Maurice Ager 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 202 lb (92 kg) Sr Crockett Vocational Tech Detroit, Michigan G 3 Shannon Brown 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Proviso East H.S. Maywood, Illinois G 1 Brandon Darnton 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 170 lb (77 kg) RS So Harbor Springs H.S. Harbor Springs, Michigan C 40 Paul Davis 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Sr Rochester H.S. Rochester Hills, Michigan G 15 DeMarcus Ducre 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Jr Saginaw H.S. Saginaw, Michigan PF 41 Marquise Gray 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 228 lb (103 kg) RS Fr Beecher H.S. Flint, Michigan G 22 Anthony Hamo 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Sr Powers Catholic Flint, Michigan F 43 Jacob Hannon 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 235 lb (107 kg) RS So Cody H.S. Cody, Wyoming C 00 Idong Ibok 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 255 lb (116 kg) So Montverde Academy Montverde, Florida SG 23 Maurice Joseph 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Champlain School Saint-Lambert, Quebec C 34 Drew Naymick 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr North Muskegon H.S. North Muskegon, Michigan PG 11 Drew Neitzel 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Wyoming Park H.S. Wyoming, Michigan F 50 Delco Rowley 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) RS Jr Arlington H.S. Indianapolis, Indiana C 14 Goran Suton 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 238 lb (108 kg) RS Fr Everett H.S. Lansing, Michigan G 2 Bryan Tibaldi 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) RS So West H.S. Traverse City, Michigan F 20 Matt Trannon 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 227 lb (103 kg) Sr Northern H.S. Flint, Michigan PG 5 Travis Walton 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) — Fr Lima H.S. Lima, Ohio	Head coach Tom Izzo (Northern Michigan) Assistant coach(es) Mark Montgomery (Michigan State) Dwayne Stephens (Michigan State) Jim Boylen (Maine) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster Last update: 2016-07-11

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	Site city, state
Exhibition Games
Nov 7, 2005 7:00 pm		Lake Superior State	W 107–73		Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Nov 12, 2005 8:00 pm		Northern Michigan	W 77–58		Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Non-conference regular season
Nov 19, 2005* 1:05 pm	No. 4	at Hawaii	L 62–84	0–1	Stan Sheriff Center  Honolulu, HI
Nov 21, 2005* 9:30 am, ESPN2	No. 12	at Chaminade EA Sports Maui Invitational	W 89–67	1–1	Lahaina Civic Center  Lahaina, HI
Nov 22, 2005* 2:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 12	vs. No. 8 Gonzaga EA Sports Maui Invitational semifinals	L 106–109 ^3OT	1–2	Lahaina Civic Center  Lahaina, HI
Nov 23, 2005* 11:30 am, ESPN	No. 12	vs. No. 9 Arizona EA Sports Maui Invitational third place game	W 74–71 ^OT	2–2	Lahaina Civic Center  Lahaina, HI
Nov 27, 2005* 1:00 pm, ESPN Plus	No. 12	IPFW	W 84–73	3–2	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Nov 30, 2005*	No. 13	Georgia Tech	W 88–86	4–2	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Dec 3, 2005*	No. 13	vs. Arkansas-Little Rock	W 72–67	5–2	Van Andel Arena  Grand Rapids, MI
Dec 6, 2005*	No. 14	vs. No. 6 Boston College Jimmy V Classic	W 77–70	6–2	Madison Square Garden  New York, NY
Dec 10, 2005*	No. 14	vs. Wichita State Spartan Clash	W 83–64	7–2	Palace of Auburn Hills  Detroit, MI
Dec 16, 2005*	No. 12	Cleveland State	W 83–75	8–2	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Dec 18, 2005*	No. 12	Florida International	W 85–58	9–2	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Dec 21, 2005*	No. 10	Green Bay	W 98–69	10–2	Resch Center  Green Bay, WI
Dec 28, 2005*	No. 9	Tennessee Tech	W 80–63	11–2	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Dec 31, 2005*	No. 9	Coppin State	W 78–54	12–2	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Big Ten regular season
Jan 5, 2006	No. 7	Illinois	L 50–60	12–3 (0–1)	Assembly Hall  Champaign, IL
Jan 8, 2006	No. 7	Wisconsin	L 63–82	12–4 (0–2)	Kohl Center  Madison, WI
Jan 11, 2006	No. 14	No. 9 Indiana	W 87–73	13–4 (1–;2)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Jan 15, 2006	No. 14	No. 19 Ohio State	W 62–59 ^2OT	14–4 (2–2)	Value City Arena  Columbus, OH
Jan 21, 2006	No. 11	No. 23 Iowa	W 85–55	15–4 (3–2)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Jan 25, 2006	No. 11	Michigan Rivalry	L 67–72	15–5 (3–3)	Crisler Arena  Ann Arbor, MI
Jan 28, 2006	No. 11	Penn State	W 69–60	16–5 (4–3)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Feb 4, 2006	No. 12	Northwestern	W 77–66	17–5 (5–3)	Welsh-Ryan Arena  Evanston, IL
Feb 8, 2006	No. 12	Purdue	W 77–52	18–5 (6–3)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Feb 11, 2006	No. 11	Minnesota	L 55–69	18–6 (6–4)	Williams Arena  Minneapolis, MN
Feb 14, 2006	No. 16	No. 18 Iowa	L 54–66	18–7 (6–5)	Carver–Hawkeye Arena  Iowa City, IA
Feb 18, 2006	No. 16	Michigan Rivalry	W 90–71	19–7 (7–5)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Feb 22, 2006	No. 18	No. 13 Ohio State	L 68–79	19–8 (7–6)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Feb 26, 2006	No. 18	Indiana	L 71–78	19–9 (7–7)	Assembly Hall  Bloomington, IN
Mar 2, 2006 7:00 pm, ESPN	No. 25	Wisconsin	W 74–65	20–9 (8–7)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Mar 4, 2006 12:00 pm, CBS	No. 25	No. 10 Illinois	L 68–75	20–10 (8–8)	Breslin Center  East Lansing, MI
Big Ten Tournament
Mar 9, 2006 5:10 pm, ESPN2	(6)	vs. No. 11 Purdue opening round	W 70–58	21–10	Conseco Fieldhouse  Indianapolis, IN
Mar 10, 2006 9:10 pm, ESPN Plus	(6)	vs. (3) No. 9 Illinois quarterfinals	W 61–56	22–10	Conseco Fieldhouse  Indianapolis, IN
Mar 11, 2006 1:40 pm, CBS	(6)	vs. (2) No. 20 Iowa semifinals	L 48–53	22–11 (8–8)	Conseco Fieldhouse  Indianapolis, IN
NCAA Tournament
Mar 17, 2006* 7:10 pm, CBS	(6 DC)	vs. (11 DC) George Mason First Round	L 65–75	22–12 (8–8)	University of Dayton Arena  Dayton, OH
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. DC=Washington, D.C. regional. All times are in Eastern Time Source[18].

Player statistics

Individual player statistics (Final)

		Scoring		Total FGs			3-point FGs			Free-Throws			Rebounds
Player	GP	Pts	Avg	FG	FGA	Pct	3FG	3FA	Pct	FT	FTA	Pct	Tot	Avg	A	Stl	Blk
Aerts, Jason	11	2	0.2	1	1	1.000	0	0		0	0		1	0.1	0	0	0
Ager, Maurice	34	656	19.3	226	495	.457	83	221	.376	121	159	.761	139	4.1	84	23	11
Brown, Shannon	34	585	17.2	202	433	.467	64	164	.390	117	141	.830	150	4.4	93	50	5
Darnton, Brandon	4	0	0.0	0	0		0	0		0	0		2	0.5	1	0	0
Davis, Paul	33	578	17.5	206	364	.566	6	19	.316	160	184	.870	301	9.1	54	34	29
Ducre, DeMarcus	6	5	0.8	1	1	1.00	1	1	1.000	2	2	1.000	6	1.0	1	0	0
Gray, Marquise	29	88	3.0	37	71	.521	0	0		14	38	.368	104	3.6	12	7	15
Hamo, Anthony	12	2	0.2	1	5	.200	0	3		0	0		6	0.5	1	0	0
Hannon, Jake	4	2	0.5	1	1	1.000	0	0		0	2	.000	2	0.5	0	0	0
Ibok, Idong	20	7	0.4	2	5	.400	0	0		3	6	.500	18	0.9	0	1	6
Joseph, Maurice	21	16	0.8	6	24	.250	3	13	.231	1	5	.200	11	0.5	1	1	0
Naymick, Drew	7	8	1.1	4	8	.500	0	0		0	0		11	1.6	3	4	2
Neitzel, Drew	34	283	8.3	98	240	.408	46	114	.404	41	44	.932	69	2.0	189	20	3
Rowley, Delco	30	31	1.0	12	22	.545	0	0		7	12	.583	33	1.1	2	4	2
Suton, Goran	31	94	3.0	40	85	.471	0	1	.000	14	19	.737	88	2.8	15	13	15
Tibaldi, Bryan	4	0	0.0	0	2	.000	0	1	.000	0	0		0	0.0	0	0	0
Trannon, Matt	22	102	4.6	38	69	.551	0	0		26	44	.591	94	4.3	30	21	10
Walton, Travis	34	61	1.8	21	53	.396	1	3	.333	18	25	.720	62	2.4	81	36	3

Legend
GP	Games played	Avg	Average per game
FG	Field-goals made	FGA	Field-goal attempts
Blk	Blocks	Stl	Steals	A	Assists

Source[19]

Rankings

Ranking movement
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking. (RV) Received votes but unranked. (NR) Not ranked.

Poll	Pre	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Wk 15	Wk 16	Wk 17	Wk 18	Wk 19	Final
AP	4	4	12	13	14	12	10	9	7	14	11	11	12	12	16	18	25	NR	NR	N/A
Coaches	5		12	14	14	12	11	9	7	15	12	12	12	11	16	16	23	NR	NR

Source[20][21]

Awards and honors

• Maurice Ager – All Big Ten Second Team (Media), All Big Ten Third Team (Coaches)[22]
• Paul Davis – All Big Ten Second Team[22]
• Shannon Brown – All Big Ten Second Team[22]

References

1. "2006 Final AP Men's Basketball Poll". College Poll Archive. March 14, 2006.
2. "Michigan State Falls To Hawaii, 84-62 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
3. "No. 12 Michigan State Upends Chaminade, 89-67 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
4. "Gonzaga outlasts Michigan State in 3 OT in Maui". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
5. "No. 12 Spartans Wrap up Maui Invitational with Overtime Win. – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
6. "No. 14 Michigan State Hands No. 6 Boston College First Loss – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
7. "No. 7 Spartans Unable To Stop Streaking Illini – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
8. "No. 7 Michigan State Upset by Wisconsin 82-63 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
9. "No. 14 Spartans Roll In Big Ten Home-Opener – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
10. "No. 14 Michigan State Tops No. 19 Ohio State in Double Overtime Thriller – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
11. "Ager, Davis Duo Propel Spartans Past Hawkeyes – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
12. "Michigan State Advances In Big Ten Tournament – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
13. "Michigan State Knocks Off No. 9 Illinois, 61-56 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
14. "Spartans Fall To No. 20 Hawkeyes, 53-48 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-16.
15. "Michigan State Falls To George Mason, 75-65 – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-10.
16. "Shannon Brown To Test NBA Draft Waters :: Spartan junior will enter his name in draft, but will not hire an agent". www.cstv.com. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
17. "Gary Harris becomes just the fifth player in Tom Izzo era to declare early for NBA draft". MLive.com. Retrieved 2016-02-03.
18. https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/michigan-state/2006-schedule.html
19. https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/michigan-state/2006.html
20. "2006 Michigan State Spartans". College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-02-10.
21. "NCAA College Basketball Polls, College Basketball Rankings, NCAA Basketball Polls – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2016-02-10.
22. "Ager, Brown and Davis Named Second-Team All-Big Ten – Michigan State Official Athletic Site". www.msuspartans.com. Retrieved 2016-02-10.