The Michigan-Michigan State basketball rivalry is one of the best in all of college sports, even if it doesn't get the attention some others receive. This year's editions will be extra intriguing as the Wolverines and Spartans have established themselves as two of the better teams in the country. Their first titanic matchup comes Friday night in East Lansing with the top spot in the Big Ten on the line.
Veteran MSU coach Tom Izzo, who has never been one to shy away from his dislike for that team in Ann Arbor, was once again teed up by reporters to say the thing on Thursday. And he obliged.
“You guys are awesome, too, because every year you want me to tell you how much I hate ‘em,” Izzo said. “So I will say it again, I hate ‘em. Of course I hate ‘em, they hate us.”
📽️ Michigan State's Tom Izzo
— Jim Comparoni (@JimComparoni) January 29, 2026
"Every year, you guys want me to say how much I hate 'em. So I'll say it again: 'I hate 'em!'" pic.twitter.com/uL6bPPX44q
Now, this hate comes with earned respect on both sides. Izzo expounded on how he's approached the rivalry through the years and learned some lessons along the way.
“The key word is respect and I do respect them a lot,” Izzo said about Michigan. “When I die, I don’t care if anybody likes me or not, I care if they respect me so that’s the way I look at the rivalry. I had my time when I hated ‘em and didn’t respect ‘em and it cost me, so I got smarter in younger days.
“If the day comes when you like your rival, it’s time to get out—that’s for anybody in any sport—but if the day comes when you don’t respect your rival, shame on you. I do have great respect for them and what they’ve accomplished and what they’re doing but I like my team too.”
Izzo has good reason to like his team. After mounting a remarkable come-from-behind road win over Rutgers on Tuesday, the Spartans enter the game with a 19-2 record. Michigan is 19-1 after pulling off its own late rally against Nebraska at the same time.
The two teams will play again with the Wolverines hosting on the final day of the regular season and there's good reason to think the results of these two contests will determine the conference championship. Then there's the possibility of them meeting in the Big Ten tournament and, possibly, deep in the NCAA tournament.
So, plenty of opportunities to hate, respectfully.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Tom Izzo Respectfully Confirms He Still Hates Michigan With Monster Matchup Looming.
