As we all come to terms with the tremendously disappointing end to the season, let’s try to put things into perspective using some historical numbers in the modern tournament era (1979 to now)
This year, MSU failed to make the Sweet 16 for the third consecutive year. Yes, that sucks. But, Izzo has a total of 13 Sweet 16 appearances, which is tied for 6th all time:
Coach K – 24
Roy Williams – 18
Jim Boeheim – 18
Dean Smith – 15 (in the modern era)
Calipari – 14
Izzo -- 13 (tied with Olson, Pitino, Calhoun, and Self)
Furthermore, if we consider the rate at which coaches reach the S16, Izzo still gets there 62% of the time. Only two active coaches with more than 10 tournament games are over 70%: Coach K (71%) and Calipari (74%), and only Bill Self (65%), Roy Williams (64%), and Sean “I can’t get to the Final Four” Miller (64%) are in the 60s.
How about Regional Finals?
Coach K – 14
Roy Williams – 13
Pitino – 12
Calipari – 11
Dean Smith – 10 (in the modern era)
Izzo -- 9 (tied with Self)
As for rates, Calipari leads the way with 61%, Pitino is at 57%, Roy Williams is at 48%, Bill Self is at 47%, and Izzo is 5th at 45%, ahead of Coach K at 42%. These numbers will chance a bit this weekend, but not by much.
Final Fours?
Izzo’s tally of 7 is tied with Pitino for 3rd in the modern era behind Coach K (12), and Roy Williams (9). Calipari can tie Izzo this year (and is likely to do so).
As for Final Four rates, Izzo is tied for second at 35%, with Coach K at 36%. Calipari, Pitino, and Williams are all at 33%.
Also of note is that Izzo has the record at 14 for the most wins as the highest seed (with Boeheim now right behind at 13). The next highest active coaches only have 7 (Beilein, Marshall, and Few).
Izzo is in the Top 6 is overall tournament winning percentage and is the only active coach with more than 10 tournament wins who is over 0.500 as the underdog.
The bottom line? Izzo is still very much an elite tournament coach, even after the last 3 years.
This year, MSU failed to make the Sweet 16 for the third consecutive year. Yes, that sucks. But, Izzo has a total of 13 Sweet 16 appearances, which is tied for 6th all time:
Coach K – 24
Roy Williams – 18
Jim Boeheim – 18
Dean Smith – 15 (in the modern era)
Calipari – 14
Izzo -- 13 (tied with Olson, Pitino, Calhoun, and Self)
Furthermore, if we consider the rate at which coaches reach the S16, Izzo still gets there 62% of the time. Only two active coaches with more than 10 tournament games are over 70%: Coach K (71%) and Calipari (74%), and only Bill Self (65%), Roy Williams (64%), and Sean “I can’t get to the Final Four” Miller (64%) are in the 60s.
How about Regional Finals?
Coach K – 14
Roy Williams – 13
Pitino – 12
Calipari – 11
Dean Smith – 10 (in the modern era)
Izzo -- 9 (tied with Self)
As for rates, Calipari leads the way with 61%, Pitino is at 57%, Roy Williams is at 48%, Bill Self is at 47%, and Izzo is 5th at 45%, ahead of Coach K at 42%. These numbers will chance a bit this weekend, but not by much.
Final Fours?
Izzo’s tally of 7 is tied with Pitino for 3rd in the modern era behind Coach K (12), and Roy Williams (9). Calipari can tie Izzo this year (and is likely to do so).
As for Final Four rates, Izzo is tied for second at 35%, with Coach K at 36%. Calipari, Pitino, and Williams are all at 33%.
Also of note is that Izzo has the record at 14 for the most wins as the highest seed (with Boeheim now right behind at 13). The next highest active coaches only have 7 (Beilein, Marshall, and Few).
Izzo is in the Top 6 is overall tournament winning percentage and is the only active coach with more than 10 tournament wins who is over 0.500 as the underdog.
The bottom line? Izzo is still very much an elite tournament coach, even after the last 3 years.
