March 10, 2006

EAST LANSING, Mich. -

2006 Big Ten Tournament
Michigan State (21-10, 8-8)
vs. Illinois (25-5, 11-5)

March 10, 2006
9:10 p.m. EST
Indianapolis, Ind.
Conseco Fieldhouse

Radio: Spartan Sports Network - Will Tieman (Play by Play), Gus Ganakas (Color). Flagship - WMMQ 94.9 FM/WJIM 1240 AM
TV: ESPN Plus - Wayne Larrivee (Play by Play), Greg Kelser (Color)

Michigan State Game Notes
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The Opening Tip
After defeating Purdue, 70-58, in the first round, No. 6 seed Michigan State faces No. 3 Illinois in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. The Fighting Illini won both meetings this season, including a 75-68 victory last Saturday in East Lansing. This is the third meeting between the two teams in Big Ten Tournament history, as MSU defeated Illinois in both the 1999 and 2000 championship games. In tournament history, the No. 6 seed is 3-4 against the No. 3 seed.

The Starting Five
Playing The Best - According to ESPN.com's InsideRPI (updated March 10), no school has played more games against top 25 teams and top 50 teams than Michigan State. The Spartans have played 11 games against top 25 teams. West Virginia and Indiana are tied for second on the list with 10 games. MSU and West Virginia have played a nation's best 16 games against top-50 competition, followed by Connecticut and Northern Iowa with 15. Michigan State is 5-6 against the top 25 and 8-8 against the top 50. Only Connecticut (7), Illinois (6) and Northern Iowa (6) have more victories against the top 25.

MSU In The Big Ten Tournament - The Spartans are looking to capture their third Big Ten Tournament championship. In nine years of the Big Ten Tournament, MSU has a record of 9-6. The Spartans won the tournament in 1999 and 2000, and lost in the quarterfinals in 1998, 2001, 2002 and 2005. MSU lost in the semifinals in 2003 and 2004. This is the first year in which Michigan State will play on the opening day of the tournament. MSU is 4-4 in quarterfinal games. The Spartans are 2-2 when the tournament is held in Indianapolis.

MSU Vs. Illinois In Big Ten Tournament - Michigan State is 2-0 against Illinois in Big Ten Tournament history, with the Spartans defeating the Illini in the 1999 and 2000 championship games. In 1999, MSU defeated Illinois, 67-50, behind nine points and 10 assists from Mateen Cleaves, and nine points and 13 rebounds from Antonio Smith. Morris Peterson and Andre Hutson each scored 11 points to pace MSU. Cory Bradford led Illinois with 21. In 2000, MSU defeated Illinois, 76-61. A.J. Granger's 17 points led four Spartans in double figures, while Hutson and Peterson each added 14. MSU shot 50 percent from the field and held Illinois to 31.1 percent shooting.

No. 6 Seeds In Tournament History - Including MSU's win over Purdue, No. 6 seeds are 13-7 all-time in Big Ten Tournament history. Iowa won the 2001 Big Ten Tournament as the No. 6 seed, while Wisconsin (2000) and Indiana (2003) advanced to the semifinals. Only the No. 2 seed (14-4) has more victories in tournament play.

Brown Against Illinois - Maywood, Ill., native Shannon Brown averages 15.3 points in four games against Illinois and high school teammate Dee Brown. It is Shannon's highest scoring average against any Big Ten team. This year, he averaged 18.5 ppg in two games.

Game 31 Notes - Michigan State 70 - Purdue 58
* Maurice Ager scored 20 points, becoming just the third Spartan to score 20 points in a Big Ten Tournament game.
* Goran Suton scored a career-high 12 points.
* Michigan State was out-rebounded, 18-17, in the first half, but the Spartans out-rebounded Purdue, 21-11, in the second half, finishing with a 38-29 advantage.
* Trailing 18-14 at the 7:51 mark of the first half, Michigan State went on a 17-6 run over next 5:38.
* Leading 37-32 early in the second half, the Spartans took control of the game with a 12-2 run to take a commanding 49-34 lead with 12:11 left in the contest.
* Michigan State improved to 2-0 against Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament.
* After missing four games with a broken jaw, Matt Trannon returned to action, recording six points and four rebounds in 19 minutes.

Illinois Notes
Coach Weber - Bruce Weber (Wisconsin-Milwaukee, '84) is 191-68 in his eighth season as a collegiate head coach, including 88-14 in his third year at Illinois. Prior to his arrival in Champaign, Weber posted a 103-54 mark at Southern Illinois.

Illini Notes - Seniors Dee Brown and James Augustine have played in a school-record 113 victories during their careers ... With 997 career rebounds, Augustine is Illinois' career leader ... Brown leads all active Big Ten players with 1,784 career points, ranking third in Illini history ... Illinois has used the same starting lineup in 29 of its 30 games ... The Illini lead the Big Ten in scoring defense (58.0 ppg), scoring margin (+12.4), 3-point field-goal percentage defense (.308) and rebound margin (+6.1).

Series History - Illinois leads the all-time series with Michigan State, 52-47. The Spartans, however, own a 2-0 advantage in Big Ten Tournament games. The Illini have won the last five games in the series. MSU's last victory in the series was a 68-65 win in East Lansing on Feb. 2, 2003. Tom Izzo is 10-10 in his career against the Illini.

The Last Meeting - Illinois defeated Michigan State, 75-68, last Saturday (March 4) in East Lansing. Dee Brown scored 16 of his 20 points in the second half. In a game that featured six ties and 10 lead changes in the first half, MSU led by a single point at halftime. With the score tied at 48 with 13:54 left, Illinois went on a 12-0 run over the next 5:07 to take a 60-48 lead, a run that included two 3-pointers by both Brown and Jamar Smith. Paul Davis recorded a double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds, as MSU out-rebounded Illinois, 38-24. Shannon Brown added 20 points for the Spartans.