Former Spartans rise to Izzo's defense over uproar

As Tom Izzo faced criticism for berating freshman Aaron Henry during Michigan State's NCAA tournament victory Thursday in Des Moines, former Spartans players came to the Hall of Fame coach's defense.

Denver Nuggets star Gary Harris told the New York Daily News that the scene was normal from his former coach and nobody involved took it personally.

Moreover, Harris said the attention is an indictment of everybody else's sensitivity. "Society is getting soft if they think that's a problem," he said.

During the second-seeded Spartans' victory over 15th-seeded Bradley on Thursday, Izzo was seen shouting angrily at Henry and even had to be held back by other players, with star Cassius Winston practically getting between them.

It became a nationwide argument on whether Izzo crossed the line. Harris, who played two seasons under Izzo, said players are forewarned about the aggressive coaching style.

"You know what you're getting yourself into when you come in there. And that's just how he gets the best out of guys," Harris said. "I just think it's funny that people were saying it's bad. Tom Izzo has been doing this for a long time. He's a Hall of Fame coach for a reason. That's what he does.

"He's cussed me out worse than that before. It's all good, though."

At the time of Izzo's fury Thursday, Michigan State was losing to Bradley and Henry appeared lackadaisical on defense. Izzo told reporters that his actions were justified and it worked because Henry played well afterward.

"What's wrong with challenging a kid that makes some mistakes?" Izzo said Thursday. "Aaron Henry — trust me — did some things that you can't do as a starter on a top-five team at the end of your freshman year. They were effort-related."

On Friday, Izzo addressed the national reaction to the way he shouted at Henry, saying he doesn't put weight into that reaction, and that he appreciated the many calls he received last night from former players and colleagues who were giving him support.

"There's a 10-second sound bite in a two-year relationship [with Henry]," Izzo said. "To me, it was ridiculous the way it blew up. I just would publicly thank the many, many people that saw it as ridiculous."

Similarly, Henry said Friday he doesn't know what all the fuss is about. "No abuse was done. Nothing bad was done. It was just coaching," Henry said. "That's what he is, that's his life, that's his job. Coaching. You can't be upset how he does it."

• Kansas' Marcus Garrett is battling an illness, but Jayhawks coach Bill Self anticipates the sophomore guard will be able to play against Auburn on Saturday night. "He's sick. He started feeling bad [Thursday] before the game," Self said.

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