Tom Izzo to take Michigan State to alma mater vs. Northern Michigan in exhibition

Tom Izzo is bringing Michigan State basketball to his alma mater for the first time in his 30 years as head coach.

Izzo's Spartans will head to the Upper Peninsula on Oct. 13 to face Northern Michigan in Marquette in a Sunday preseason exhibition at 1 p.m., the schools announced Thursday.

Izzo is a 1977 graduate of Northern Michigan, and grew up 90 minutes south from campus in Iron Mountain, on the Michigan-Wisconsin border.

“To say I’m excited about the opportunity to bring my Michigan State team to play at Northern Michigan, my alma mater, would be a pretty big understatement,” Izzo said in a statement. “This is something we’ve wanted to try and do for a while, and I think it’s going to be a pretty special event. We’re excited to bring our team to the UP to play, and it’s going to be very cool to play a game in the Superior Dome, one of the really great venues in college athletics. I think this will mean a great deal to people, not only in East Lansing but especially for the great people in Marquette and the Upper Peninsula."

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The game will tip at NMU's Superior Dome, recognized as the largest free-standing wooden dome in the world by the Guinness Book of World Records. This will be the first collegiate basketball action at the dome, which is home to the Wildcats football team, with a capacity of 8,000.

“I’ve always said that I want my players to have moments that are memory-makers for them, from playing on an aircraft carrier or in the Champions Classic and getting the chance to play in the NCAA Tournament," Izzo said. "I know they’re excited about going to play at a place that is really special for me, and I think this is going to be a memory-maker for all of us.”

Izzo has coached against his alma mater six times in exhibitions, the last coming Oct. 30, 2018, a 93-47 win at the Breslin Center in East Lansing.

MSU leads NMU in the all-time regular-season series, 7-1, but the teams have not met since 1974 and '75, when Izzo started at guard for the Wildcats. MSU won in 1975 at Jenison Field House, 81-65, with Izzo collecting nine points, two assists, and one rebound, block and steal each across 32 minutes. The last time the Spartans visited Northern Michigan was in 1974, an MSU 91-59 win, with Izzo dishing six assists.

MSU is about to head to Spain for a 10-day trip, with at least three exhibition games scheduled.

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