Tom Izzo's evolution helped Michigan State return to Sweet 16

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo recaps the first weekend of the NCAA tournament and looks ahead to the Sweet 16. Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press

EAST LANSING — Tom Izzo sees himself when he looks at LSU. Or at least he sees something close to his basketball ideal. Or what we used to think of his ideal.

“They have one of those junkyard dog teams that I’ve always appreciated,” he said Monday during his weekly news conference.

And if that sounds like something Izzo might have said a decade ago, it is. Because he did. He’s a football coach at heart. He likes athletic, physical, tough-minded teams.

The admiration Izzo has for the Tigers is real. But don’t get lost in it. For it hides the evolutionary…