MSU men's basketball: Spartans to open with UNC, Duke

Written by Joe Rexrode and Published by LSJ; September 08, 2011 Tweet 

It starts with North Carolina ad Duke, ends with Ohio State and offers few extended breaks in between. 

The 2011-12 Michigan State men's basketball schedule, released Wednesday, may not have as many marquee games as some past versions - but Tom Izzo has never faced a one-two punch to start a season like North Carolina (Nov. 11 on deck of the USS Carl Vinson in San Diego) and Duke (Nov. 15 at New York's Madison Square Garden.)

"It sets the tone for what, on paper, could prove to be one of our most difficult schedules ever," Izzo said in a statement. "Everyone said last year's schedule was one of our toughest, and yet, this year we are playing more teams that appeared in the NCAA Tournament and postseason last year. 

"The open of our schedule provides incredible exposure not only for the program, but also Michigan State University You won't find another team in America with a stronger open to the season."

The Spartans, coming off a 19-15 season and losing guards Kalin Lucas and Durrell Summers, will enter 2011-12 with relatively modest expectations - they've appeared in some analysts' preseason rankings, not in others. 

But they'll start with the likely preseason No.1 team, UNC, then take on Duke in the Champions Classic in New York (Kentucky and Kansas will play in second game of a double deader), and also travel to Gonzaga and host Florida State in the nonleague portion of the schedule. 

In all, MSU will face 11 teams that played in last season's NCAA Tournament, and 15 that played in the postseason. 

The Big Ten Schedule is tough, too. Nebraska joins the league to bring the Big Ten to 12 teams, which means each team will play four league foes once in the 18- game schedule. 

MSU will play iowa and Penn State at home only, and Northwestern and Illinois on the road only. The Spartans will play all the projected top teams in the league twice.

The Spartans open Big Ten play Dec. 28 at home against indiana and finish March 4 at home against preseason Big Ten favorite Ohio State.

"With so many talented teams, the conference race might ultimately be decided by the single plays on the schedule," Izzo said. "What makes the Big Ten great, however is that there are no guarantees, especially when you consider the great players, coaches and home-court advantages throughout the league."

MSU starts with two home exhibitions, Oct. 30 against Ferris State and Nov. 4 against Hillsdale, before heading to San Diego to take on the Tar Heels. 

The nonleague schedule also includes a Nov. 20 home game against 2011 NCAA Tournament team Arkansas-Little Rock in the new Auto-Owners Insurance Spartan Invitational, and a Nov. 27 game at Eastern Michigan. 

MSU brings a 14-season NCAA Tournament streak into 2010-11, the third-longest streak in the nation. Three of this season's opponents are also high on the list - Duke (second with 16 straight), Gonzaga (tied for fourth with 13) and Wisconsin (tied for fourth with 13).