Michigan head coach Dusty May was full of lame excuses on Sunday. After Michigan State’s dominant 79-62 win over No. 17 Michigan on Sunday, the game took an interesting turn late, with some serious tension building up between both teams. While the game saw some hard-fought moments, it was the incident with Michigan’s L.J. Cason and Phat Phat Brooks standing on the MSU logo at half-court during the senior day tradition that caused sparks to fly.
The Shoving Incident
The altercation started when Michigan State’s Tre Holloman got into a little shoving match with the Michigan players, which led to both teams being separated. Naturally, Michigan State’s legendary coach Tom Izzo backed up Holloman, but Michigan’s Dusty May had a less-than-constructive response to the situation.
@umichbball is classless. Let the @MSU_Basketball team celebrate their careers with a long honored tradition of kissing the floor. All the announcers are in agreement this was a classless move by Michigan. Good for Trey Holloman for standing up for a honored tradition. pic.twitter.com/ozMfel5FyT
— conman_stalions (@conman_stalions) March 9, 2025
Dusty May’s Excuses
May tried to play it cool by offering a series of snarky excuses when pressed about the altercation. When asked about the incident, May responded with, “I didn’t know there was a tradition where they’re shooting a free throw and we have guys standing at half court, there’s not a tradition that we can’t stand at half court while the game’s going on?” What? Not even a real apology or acknowledgment that it may have been an inappropriate moment? Instead, he followed up with, “As far as whatever happened, are we not allowed to stand at half-court while they’re shooting a free throw? Oh you are? O.K.”
Pretty weak, if you ask me.
Admitting Defeat, but Not Accountability
Even after the frustration of his team being outplayed, May tried to downplay the whole thing, saying, “They earned the right to rub our noses in it. It is what it is. We have to play better. We have to get tougher.” While we’ll give him some credit for admitting that Michigan State won fair and square, his excuse for the altercation was nothing more than a poor attempt to deflect the heat.
Looking Ahead to the Big Ten Tournament
The Big Ten tournament is just around the corner, and it looks like Michigan has a lot of work to do if they want to compete for a championship after being handed another loss to their in-state rival. But hey, it’s no surprise; May’s team couldn’t keep up with the Spartans, and now he’s left grasping at excuses for their poor performance.
