Thoughts on MSU basketball's 2011-12 season and looking ahead

It started with President Obama on the sideline and ended with Muhammed Ali watching from the stands.

In between, the MSU men's basketball team turned in one of the most improbable seasons in a long time. It ended with a thud, but it was full of surprises and memories.

We tend to look at any MSU season that didn't finish in the Final Four and consider it a failure (That's what Drew Sharp did before later changing his column). Sure, when a No. 1 seed doesn't reach the Final Four, it should be labeled a disappointment. But this was an MSU team that overachieved all season, and when Branden Dawson went down, the margin for error was extremely thin. It got them against Louisville.

But who saw it getting that far? Two championships and a Sweet 16, not bad for a team that began the season unranked.



It actually started in the offseason. Garrick Sherman transferred shortly after the 2010-11 season ended, joining Korie Lucious, who had been kicked off earlier that year. Then Delvon Roe announced his retirement in the summer. The Spartans were going to be shorthanded. Freshmen were going to be relied upon. The goal wasn't a Final Four. It wasn't even a Big Ten championship. It was play as well as you can and get better as the season goes on. No one knew what to expect.

MSU commit Matt Costello named Mr. Basketball

For the fourth straight year, an MSU basketball commit has been named Michigan's Mr. Basketball.

Bay City Western's Matt Costello is set to come to East Lansing next season, joining Derrick Nix and Keith Appling as Michigan Mr. Basketball winners on the Spartans' roster. Dwaun Anderson was committed to MSU at the time he won the award last season, but the passing of his mother led to him choosing not to enroll at MSU. He later enrolled at Wagner.

In Costello, MSU has a big man who can rebound and hit the outside shot. He averaged 25.1 points, 17.8 rebounds, four blocks and four assists per game this season. He also reportedly had a bit of a mean streak and can mix it up on the glass. His versatility is in the mold of Draymond Green or Alex Gauna, and Costello could take Green's spot in the starting lineup next season, although he needs to get a little stronger. He is ranked the No. 82 player in the country, according to Rivals.

Costello would be be the 12th MSU player to have won the award since it began in 1981, not including Anderson. The others are: Sam Vincent (1981), Matt Steigenga (1988), Anthony Miller (1990), Jon Garavaglia (1993), Jason Richardson (1999), Marcus Taylor (2000), Kelvin Torbert (2001), Paul Davis, (2002), Drew Neitzel (2004), Nix (2009) and Appling (2010)

Lansing Sexton's Denzel Valentine, another MSU commit, finished second for the Mr. Basketball award.