# 1999–2000 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team

The 1999–2000 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team represented Michigan State University in the 1999–2000 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team played their home games at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan. They were coached by Tom Izzo, in his fifth year as head coach, and were members of the Big Ten Conference. The Spartans finished the season 32–7, 13–3 to win a share of the Big Ten regular season championship for the third consecutive year. As the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten tournament, they defeated Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois to win the tournament championship for the second consecutive year. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region (their second consecutive No. 1 seed), they defeated Valparaiso and Utah to advance to the Sweet Sixteen for the third consecutive year. They then defeated Syracuse and Iowa State to advance to the Final Four for the second consecutive year. After a win in the National Semifinal over fellow Big Ten foe Wisconsin, MSU won the national championship over Florida. The win marked the school's second national championship and Izzo's only championship to date.

## Previous season

The Spartans finished the 1998–99 season 33–5, 15–1 to win their second consecutive Big Ten regular season championship. They defeated Northwestern, Wisconsin, and Illinois to win the Big Ten tournament. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 seed in the Midwest region, their second consecutive trip to the Tournament. MSU defeated Mount Saint Mary's and Ole Miss to advance to their second straight Sweet Sixteen. In the Sweet Sixteen, they defeated Oklahoma to advance to the school's first Elite Eight since 1979. In the Elite Eight, they defeated Kentucky to earn a trip to the Final Four for the first time since 1979. There they lost No. 1-ranked Duke. The 33 wins marked a school record for wins in a season.

## Season summary
### Non-conference play

The Spartans were looking to build on their Final Four appearance the year before with seniors, Mateen Cleaves (12.1 points and 6.9 assist per game) and Morris Peterson (16.8 points and 6.0 rebounds per game), leading the way. MSU began the season ranked No. 3 in the country, but were without starting point guard and team captain, Cleaves, who sustained a stress fracture in his right foot during the offseason.
Without Cleaves, the Spartans began the season with a home win over Toledo before travelling to Puerto Rico for the Puerto Rico Shootout. In Puerto Rico, they defeated Providence and South Carolina to advance to the championship of the tournament. In the championship game, they lost to No. 20 Texas. The Spartans went on to defeat No. 2 North Carolina on the road as part of the inaugural ACC–Big Ten Challenge. MSU returned to East Lansing for easy wins over Howard and Eastern Michigan. A win over No. 5-ranked Kansas in the Great Eight in Chicago followed. A road loss to No. 2 Arizona followed the neutral court win over Kansas. MSU sandwiched home wins over Oakland and Mississippi Valley State around a loss on the road to unranked Kentucky. A shocking loss on the road at Wright State added to the early season struggles and ended the non-conference slate. MSU would enter the Big Ten schedule at 9–4 and ranked No. 11 in the country.

### Big Ten play

Cleaves returned to the Spartans lineup on January 5, 2000, to help the Spartans to wins over Penn State and Iowa. Led by Cleaves the Spartans defeated No. 9 Indiana before losing their first Big Ten game on the road to No. 7 Ohio State. The loss stopped MSU's 21-game conference winning streak dating back to 1999. The Spartans bounced back with wins over Northwestern in back-to-back games, holding Northwestern to 29 points in the second game. A win over Illinois led by Charlie Bell's 20 points led to a matchup against rival Michigan with the Spartans at 15–5, 6–1 on the season. In Ann Arbor, MSU faced the Wolverines as Michigan was without leading scorer Jamal Crawford who was declared ineligible 20 minutes before the game started because of NCAA investigations. Led by Morris Peterson's 32 points and 10 rebounds, MSU had no problems with Michigan, winning by 20. MSU then stepped out of conference for a matchup with No. 7 Connecticut, a fellow participant in the prior year's Final Four. The Spartans easily beat the Huskies, scoring 25 second-chance points and 20 points off Huskie turnovers. MSU returned to the Big Ten to face Purdue in West Lafayette and were upset, falling 70–67. The loss dropped the Spartans to 17–6, 7–2. The Spartans rebounded to beat Wisconsin in Madison before beating No. 7 Ohio State to avenge their earlier loss. A close win over Wisconsin in East Lansing marked their 26th straight win in the Breslin Center and pushed the Spartans to 10–2 in conference. A road win over Penn State preceded an overtime road loss to No. 16 Indiana. MSU returned home and blew out Minnesota 79–43. In the final regular season game of the season, the Spartans faced Michigan again. Cleaves dished out 20 assists as he set the then Big Ten career record for assists in the 114–63 thumping of the Wolverines.
The Spartans finished the conference slate with a 13–3 conference record and 23–7 overall while being ranked No. 2 in the country. MSU earned a share of the Big Ten regular season title with Ohio State, their third consecutive championship.

### Big Ten tournament

The Spartans went on to win the third annual Big Ten tournament as the No. 2 seed, defeating No. 25 Illinois for the championship for the second consecutive year. Cleaves and Peterson were named to the All–Tournament Team and Peterson was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.

### NCAA Tournament

As a result of their strong finish, the Spartans were awarded the No. 1 seed, their second consecutive No. 1 seed, in the Midwest region of the NCAA tournament. From there, the Spartans cruised to their third consecutive Sweet Sixteen with wins over Valparaiso, and Utah. MSU continued their national championship push by reaching their second consecutive Final Four with wins over Syracuse and Iowa State. MSU won every game by double digits despite playing the best possible seed in each round. In their Final Four matchup, Michigan State faced off against fellow Big Ten foe, Wisconsin, beating them in a hard-fought game, 53–41.
In the national championship game, the Spartans triumphed over the Florida 89–76, despite losing Cleaves to an ankle injury 3:42 into the second half. Cleaves eventually returned, severely limping and in obvious pain, to lead the Spartans to the championship. Cleaves was subsequently named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. Joining Cleaves on the NCAA All-Tournament Team were Morris Peterson, Charlie Bell, and A.J. Granger. The national championship was the school's second ever basketball national companionship and first since 1979.

## Roster and statistics

1999–2000 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team :
| Number | Name | Class | Position | Height | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| 25 | Aloyisus Anagonye | FR | F | 6'8" | 2.9 | 3.0 | 0.3 |
| 55 | Adam Ballinger | FR | F | 6'9" | 2.0 | 1.7 | 0.3 |
| 14 | Charlie Bell | JR | G | 6'3" | 11.5 | 4.9 | 3.2 |
| 20 | Mike Chappell | JR | F | 6'9" | 5.9 | 2.2 | 0.6 |
| 22 | Steve Cherry | SR | F | 6'6" | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| 12 | Mateen Cleaves | SR | G | 6'2" | 12.1 | 1.8 | 6.9 |
| 43 | A. J. Granger | SR | F | 6'9" | 9.5 | 5.3 | 1.2 |
| 34 | Andre Hutson | JR | F | 6'8" | 10.2 | 6.2 | 1.5 |
| 15 | Mat Ishbia | FR | G | 5'10" | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| 42 | Morris Peterson | SR | F | 6'7" | 16.8 | 6.0 | 1.3 |
| 23 | Jason Richardson | FR | F | 6'6" | 5.1 | 4.1 | 0.6 |
| 10 | Brandon Smith | JR | G | 5'11" | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.8 |
| 11 | David Thomas | JR | F | 6'7" | 2.4 | 2.4 | 1.5 |

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| Nov 5, 1999* 7:30 pm | | California All-Stars | W 115–66 | – | 25 – Richardson | 10 – Anagonye | 6 – Peterson | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Nov 5, 1999* 7:30 pm | | Mexican All-Stars | W 79–69 | – | 18 – Peterson | 8 – Richardson | 7 – Bell | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Regular season |||||||||
| Nov 22, 1999* 7:30 pm | No. 3 | Toledo | W 78–33 | 1–0 | 19 – Peterson | 10 – Tied | 5 – Thomas | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Nov 25, 1999* 12 pm, ESPN2 | No. 3 | vs. Providence Puerto Rico Shootout | W 82–58 | 2–0 | 18 – Peterson | 7 – Ballinger | 8 – Bell | Coliseo Rubén Rodríguez Bayamon, PR |
| Nov 26, 1999* 2:30 pm | No. 3 | vs. South Carolina Puerto Rico Shootout semifinals | W 59–56 | 3–0 | 21 – Peterson | 5 – Granger | 3 – Tied | Coliseo Rubén Rodríguez (897) Bayamon, PR |
| Nov 27, 1999* 7:00 pm | No. 3 | vs. No. 20 Texas Puerto Rico Shootout championship | L 74–81 | 3–1 | 17 – Huston | 7 – Hutson | 4 – Tied | Coliseo Rubén Rodríguez Bayamon, PR |
| Dec 1, 1999* 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 8 | at No. 2 North Carolina ACC-Big Ten Challenge | W 86–76 | 4–1 | 31 – Peterson | 10 – Hutson | 7 – Thomas | Dean Smith Center (21,572) Chapel Hill, NC |
| Dec 3, 1999* 6:00 pm | No. 8 | Howard Coca-Cola Spartan Classic | W 75–45 | 5–1 | 14 – Hutson | 10 – Hutson | 4 – Tied | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Dec 4, 1999* 8:30 pm | No. 8 | Eastern Michigan Coca-Cola Spartan Classic championship | W 74–57 | 6–1 | 16 – Peterson | 7 – Richardson | 6 – Thomas | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Dec 7, 1999* 6:00 pm, ESPN | No. 4 | vs. No. 5 Kansas Great Eight | W 66–54 | 7–1 | 21 – Bell | 10 – Peterson | 4 – Tied | United Center (13,127) Chicago, IL |
| Dec 11, 1999* 12:00 pm, CBS | No. 4 | at No. 2 Arizona | L 68–79 | 7–2 | 20 – Bell | 6 – Thomas | 4 – Peterson | McKale Center (14,441) Tucson, AZ |
| Dec 18, 1999* 7:30 pm | No. 5 | Oakland | W 86–51 | 8–2 | 20 – Bell | 7 – Hutson | 4 – Thomas | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Dec 23, 1999* 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | at Kentucky | L 58–60 | 8–3 | 18 – Peterson | 9 – Richardson | 3 – Bell | Rupp Arena (23,318) Lexington, KY |
| Dec 28, 1999* 7:30 pm | No. 8 | Mississippi Valley St. | W 96–63 | 9–3 | 22 – Peterson | 8 – Peterson | 11 – Bell | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Dec 30, 1999* 7:00 pm | No. 8 | at Wright State | L 49–53 | 9–4 | 17 – Granger | 7 – Bell | 2 – Tied | Nutter Center (9,413) Dayton, OH |
| Jan 5, 2000 7:00 pm, ESPN Plus | No. 11 | Penn State | W 76–63 | 10–4 (1–0) | 15 – Granger | 4 – Tied | 5 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Jan 8, 2000 8:00 pm, ESPN Plus | No. 11 | at Iowa | W 75–53 | 11–4 (2–0) | 29 – Peterson | 8 – Peterson | 7 – Bell | Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500) Iowa City, IA |
| Jan 11, 2000 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | No. 9 Indiana | W 77–71 $^{OT}$ | 12–4 (3–0) | 22 – Bell | 8 – Tied | 8 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (15,138) East Lansing, MI |
| Jan 20, 2000 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 10 | at No. 13 Ohio State | L 67–78 | 12–5 (3–1) | 20 – Peterson | 11 – Peterson | 7 – Cleaves | Value City Arena (19,100) Columbus, OH |
| Jan 22, 2000 12:07 pm, ESPN Plus Regional | No. 10 | Northwestern | W 69–45 | 13–5 (4–1) | 14 – Bell | 8 – Tied | 7 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (14,659) East Lansing, MI |
| Jan 27, 2000 8:00 pm, ESPN Plus | No. 9 | at Northwestern | W 59–29 | 14–5 (5–1) | 19 – Peterson | 10 – Hutson | 9 – Cleaves | Welsh-Ryan Arena (5,907) Evanston, IL |
| Jan 30, 2000 1:00 pm, CBS | No. 9 | Illinois | W 91–66 | 15–5 (6–1) | 20 – Bell | 11 – Hutson | 11 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (14,659) East Lansing, MI |
| Feb 1, 2000 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 8 | at Michigan Rivalry | W 82–62 | 16–5 (7–1) | 32 – Peterson | 10 – Tied | 6 – Cleaves | Crisler Arena (13,562) Ann Arbor, MI |
| Feb 5, 2000* 1:00 pm, CBS | No. 8 | No. 7 Connecticut | W 85–66 | 17–5 | 16 – Peterson | 8 – Granger | 8 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (14,659) East Lansing, MI |
| Feb 8, 2000 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 6 | at Purdue | L 67–70 | 17–6 (7–2) | 17 – Granger | 12 – Granger | 9 – Cleaves | Mackey Arena (14,123) West Lafayette, IN |
| Feb 12, 2000 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 6 | at Wisconsin | W 61–44 | 18–6 (8–2) | 18 – Peterson | 11 – Granger | 4 – Cleaves | Kohl Center (17,142) Madison, WI |
| Feb 15, 2000 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 6 | No. 7 Ohio State | W 83–72 | 19–6 (9–2) | 26 – Peterson | 11 – Peterson | 7 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (14,659) East Lansing, MI |
| Feb 19, 2000 4:30 pm, ESPN Plus Regional | No. 6 | Wisconsin | W 59–54 | 20–6 (10–2) | 15 – Tied | 6 – Richardson | 6 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (14,659) East Lansing, MI |
| Feb 23, 2000 9:00 pm, ESPN Plus | No. 5 | at Penn State | W 79–63 | 21–6 (11–2) | 17 – Peterson | 10 – Thomas | 10 – Cleaves | Bryce Jordan Center (11,954) University Park, PA |
| Feb 26, 2000 2:00 pm, CBS | No. 5 | at No. 16 Indiana | L 79–81 $^{OT}$ | 21–7 (11–3) | 22 – Cleaves | 10 – Peterson | 4 – Bell | Assembly Hall (17,412) Bloomington, IN |
| Mar 2, 2000 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 7 | Minnesota | W 79–43 | 22–7 (12–3) | 18 – Chappell | 12 – Richardson | 9 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (14,659) East Lansing, MI |
| Mar 4, 2000 12:22 pm, ESPN Plus | No. 7 | Michigan Rivalry | W 114–63 | 23–7 (13–3) | 31 – Bell | 10 – Hutson | 20 – Cleaves | Breslin Center (14,659) East Lansing, MI |
| Big Ten tournament |||||||||
| Mar 10, 2000 6:40 pm, ESPN Regional | (2) No. 5 | vs. (7) Iowa quarterfinals | W 75–65 | 24–7 | 22 – Peterson | 9 – Tied | 7 – Cleaves | United Center (19,627) Chicago, IL |
| Mar 11, 2000 4:00 pm, CBS | (2) No. 5 | vs. (6) Wisconsin semifinals | W 55–46 | 25–7 | 18 – Peterson | 8 – Hutson | 7 – Cleaves | United Center (22,011) Chicago, IL |
| Mar 12, 2000 2:30 pm, CBS | (2) No. 5 | vs. (4) No. 25 Illinois championship | W 76–61 | 26–7 | 17 – Granger | 6 – Tied | 6 – Tied | United Center (19,663) Chicago, IL |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| Mar 16, 2000* 7:40 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 2 | vs. (16 MW) Valparaiso First Round | W 65–38 | 27–7 | 15 – Cleaves | 10 – Richardson | 8 – Cleaves | Wolstein Center (13,374) Cleveland, OH |
| Mar 18, 2000* 3:30 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 2 | vs. (8 MW) Utah Second Round | W 73–61 | 28–7 | 21 – Cleaves | 8 – Hutson | 5 – Cleaves | Wolstein Center (13,374) Cleveland, OH |
| Mar 23, 2000* 7:38 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 2 | vs. (4 MW) No. 16 Syracuse Sweet Sixteen | W 75–58 | 29–7 | 21 – Peterson | 6 – Bell | 7 – Cleaves | The Palace of Auburn Hills (21,214) Auburn Hills, MI |
| Mar 25, 2000* 7:00 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 2 | vs. (2 MW) No. 6 Iowa State Elite Eight | W 75–64 | 30–7 | 18 – Tied | 11 – Hutson | 2 – Tied | The Palace of Auburn Hills (21,214) Auburn Hills, MI |
| Apr 1, 2000* 5:42 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 2 | vs. (8 W) Wisconsin Final Four | W 53–41 | 31–7 | 20 – Peterson | 10 – Hutson | 2 – Bell | RCA Dome (43,116) Indianapolis, IN |
| Apr 3, 2000* 9:18 pm, CBS | (1 MW) No. 2 | vs. (5 E) No. 13 Florida National championship | W 89–76 | 32–7 | 21 – Peterson | 9 – Granger | 5 – Tied | RCA Dome (43,116) Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 8 | 11 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 2 |

## Awards and honors

* Mateen Cleaves – NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player
* Mateen Cleaves – All-Big Ten First Team
* Morris Peterson – All-Big Ten First Team
* Morris Peterson – Chicago Tribune Silver Basketball
* Morris Peterson – Big Ten tournament Most Outstanding Player