North Michigan News

The upcoming Superior Dome Showdown between the Michigan State Spartans and the Northern Michigan Wildcats is set to be a significant event in Marquette, Michigan. Scheduled for Sunday, October 13 at 1 p.m., this historic matchup will take place in the Superior Dome and is expected to draw over 11,000 attendees, potentially making it one of the largest sporting events in Upper Peninsula history.

Televised on Big Ten Network, the game will feature commentary from Bill Raftery and Lisa Byington. Fans can follow updates via Twitter accounts @NMUMensBBALL and @NMU_Wildcats.

Northern Michigan's head coach Matt Majkrzak expressed his enthusiasm for the event: "One of the benefits of having a mature group that's been through some things is to not downplay this because it's so awesome…but the NCAA Tournament is really nerve-wracking with a lot of pressure and expectations. Let's really enjoy the weekend, let's have as much fun as possible, but let's have as much fun as possible, and for the two and a half hours of gameday, let's really lock in and try to play basketball at the highest level that we possibly can."

This game marks Tom Izzo's first visit back to Northern Michigan University (NMU) as a coach since graduating in 1977. Izzo has faced NMU six times previously in exhibition games. The Spartans lead their all-time series against NMU 7-1.

Izzo's #10 jersey has been retired by NMU alongside Ted Rose and Gene Summers' jerseys. During his time at NMU from 1974-76 under Coach Glenn Brown, Izzo was recognized for his exceptional skills as a guard.

The Wildcats are coming off successful seasons with back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. Last season they won their first GLIAC regular-season title since 1992-93 under Coach Majkrzak.

On MSU's side, they finished last season with a record of 20-15 overall. The team returns three starters including senior guard Jaden Akins who led with scoring averages last year.

MSU welcomes new transfers Frankie Fidler from Omaha and Szymon Zapala from Longwood/Utah State along with five newcomers contributing to their strong recruiting class ranked nationally among top programs.

Izzo continues his legacy at MSU having reached over 700 career wins last season while maintaining an impressive streak of NCAA Tournament appearances leading up to eight Final Four appearances during his tenure.