And Starring in This Year’s Production of Cinderella…Michigan State!

Posted by Stiletto Jen 3,872 views

Look out everyone, Michigan State just became the Cinderella team of The Big Dance! The Spartans are headed to the National Championship Title Game

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They didn’t just beat the No. 1 seeded UConn 82-73, they also totally dominated the Huskies during the second half.

Some people laugh when I say State is the Cinderella this year (and no, not because I’m calling male basketball players princesses). So many people don’t believe that a No. 2 seed can even be considered a Cinderella. They are usually ranked No. 6 or higher and the whole point of the Cinderellas is that they are the come from behind teams and sneak in to win the games and capture the hearts of all the fans. Typically, a No. 2 seed has already done all that before even going into the tournament.

Going into March Madness, the Spartans were 26-6 for the season, 15-3 within their conference and ranked #1 in the Big 10.

So why do people seem genuinely shocked to see them in the Final Four and now, battling it out for the National Title?

Even my friend who is “Go State!” all day everyday, was still a bit stunned to find himself buying plane tickets to go home to Motor City and scouting Stub Hub for Final Four tickets.

It’s not like there weren’t other upsets in the brackets–uh Cleveland State, anyone get that one right? Even Siena had a good run and almost took down the number one seed of the entire tournament OT. But it was Michigan State that came out and actually did take them down–and only two days after Louisville decimated Arizona by about 40 points.

That win sendt the boys in green back home to Detroit, Michigan for the Final Four, where they first took on UConn and will now meet up with UNC. Detroit is only a mere 75 miles away from Michigan State University.

Hope packed up and left Detroit months ago and the city has become a place where spirits are low. In the last year, they have been rapidly losing their esteemed title of “Motor City.” Having the “underdogs” of the tourney coming home to battle it out has now breathed life back into the bleak town–in the same way that Seabiscuit and James Braddock (Cinderella Man) brought towns back during the Great Depression.

And now these boys are taking it all the way to end, showing the country that if you just work hard everyday and believe in yourself, anything is possible.

If that ain’t a Cinderella story, than what is? Shoot, Disney can’t write a plot line better than this one. Though if they do get the rights to produce this story, I would like Larenz Tate, Will Smith, LL Cool J, Tyson Beckford and Taye Diggs as Lucas, Morgan, Summers, Allen and Roe. Oh, and Mark Wahlberg as Goran Suton. What? I’m just saying, that would be HOT!

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Quick Facts:

#2 Michigan State (30–6)

Big 10
Location: East Lansing, MI
Mascot: Spartans
School Colors: Green and White
Coach: Tom Izzo (for shizzo)
Players: Kalin Lucas, Raymar Morgan, Goran Sutton, Durrell Summers, Delvon Roe, Chris Allen (not to be confused with cutie Kris Allen from American Idol….)
Claim to Fame: They have won 2 Championships. The most notable was the 1979 game that pitted Spartan Ervin “Magic” Johnson against Indiana’s Larry Bird. Perhaps you have heard of them? That win fueled the rivalry that extended into the NBA with Magic on the Lakers and Bird on the Celtics.

Head Coach aka Fairy Godmother: Tom Izzo (fo’ shizzo)

Izzo has been the Spartans’ head coach since 1995. Going into the tourney, his overall record for the last 14 years is 335-136.

Since 1999, the Spartans have made it to the Final Four, five times under Izzo’s coaching. In 2000, they not only went to the Final Four, but they also went on to defeat Florida 89-76 to win their second National Championship.

Oh, and since he took over, the Spartans have made the the college basketball postseason–aka, the tournaments–every single year.

Plus every single player that has played all four years for Coach Izzo has played in at least one Final Four. Yeah I know, that kind of stat hurts my head too, but no other coach can claim that and my MSU buddy seems to think it is a huge key fact to mention.

Izzo has been named Coach of the Year, Coach of the Conference and I now dub him Fairy Godmother Coach of the Year. I’m sure he will love my pink, sparkly trophy I shall give him.

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The Players

The kids that have made this team such a success are Kalin Lucas, Raymar Morgan, Goran Sutton, Durrell Summers, Delvon Roe, and Chris Allen. Right before the Sweet 16 kicked off, I did a piece on the hotties of the tournament where I featured Delvon Roe. For now, I’m leaving this piece stat free–but I may add some figures before the games begin.

Durrell Summers

Raymar Morgan

Goran Suton

Chris Allen

Kalin Lucas

About the author: Jennifer Taglione is the owner of this fabulous website Stiletto Sports. Despite writing well over 500 posts, she still maintains that she is not a sports writer! She is however a huge fan of Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald, Mark Sanchez, the Celtics, and totally kicks butt on March Madness brackets! Connect with her by following her on Twitter @StilettoSportsJ and subscribing to her weekly newsletter. For more info check out the About the Editor page!