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Tom Izzo unhappy with team despite blowout win for Michigan State

Michigan State Spartans men's basketball coach Tom Izzo is in midseason form. He called the team's recent 76-44 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff one of their worst performances of the season.

Andy Lyons

The No. 19 Michigan State Spartans men's basketball team moved to 7-2 on the season with a comfortable win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Wednesday, but you wouldn't know it by how head coach Tom Izzo talked about the team's performance. The Spartans built a commanding 38-12 lead in the first 20 minutes of the game, and they held the Golden Lions to 27.8 percent shooting on the night, but Izzo felt they didn't execute at a high enough level.

Izzo spoke with reporters after the win, and Chris Solari of LSJ.com recorded all the juicy quotes:

"I wasn't pleased with the game at all. There were moments we moved the ball well, moments we got the ball inside and out well, moments we checked very well, moments we went to the offensive glass really well. But a lot of moments when what we did was not acceptable at all. ...

"In a way, that was one of our worst performances of the year as far as just playing with some passion and some persistence. I don't know who I'm more disappointed with - a few players or myself. I'm gonna take 99 percent of the blame."

The schedule remains soft for the Spartans for another week. They host Loyola (IL), Tuskegee and Bowling Green over the next three games, but then they play Texas and start Big Ten conference play. There is no doubt that Izzo has his eye on preparing his team for the marathon of Big Ten basketball, but it's hard to believe he really thinks the team's 22-point win on Wednesday was an issue.