Paul Davis, Maurice Ager, and Shannon Brown are committed to win
After four games in five days, Spartan basketball fans have learned a great deal about the character of the 2005-06 squad. After being blown out against Hawai’i, they struggled against Division-II Chaminade before pulling away in the second half. Many people wondered how they would respond against a top-10 Gonzaga team with one of the best offensive players in the nation (Adam Morrison). Michigan State lost a triple-overtime thriller to the Zags, and then had to face another top-10 team a day later. They could have packed their bags and written off Arizona as a loss, but instead they came out and dominated the first half. When the Wildcats roared back to take a late lead, MSU could have given up. They didn’t; they forced an extra session and won.
On Sunday, Joe Rexrode of the Lansing State Journal wrote that MSU’s experience in Hawai’i is evidence that Paul Davis, Maurice Ager, and Shannon Brown are due for a huge season. If they play with the heart they showed in the Maui Invitational, don’t bet against them.
The No. 12 Spartans (2-2) got plenty out of a loss at Hawaii, a triple-overtime loss to No. 8 Gonzaga, and an overtime win over No. 9 Arizona. The emergence of freshmen Goran Suton, Marquise Gray and Travis Walton as key players was as big as any news off the island. But it was the determination Davis, Ager and Brown showed that floored coach Tom Izzo.
“It brings me back to the glory days that we had,” said Izzo, referring to the 2000 national championship team led by Mateen Cleaves, Morris Peterson, Andre Hutson and Charlie Bell.
“Like coach said, his job is to push us to do things we never thought we could do,” Davis said. “And us three have made a bond together that we’re not gonna let this team go down.”