Michigan State began the 2013 – 14 season looking to continue Tom Izzo 's Final Four streak : every player who had played four years for Izzo had made at least one Final Four . After beating No. 1 Kentucky in the Champions Classic , the Spartans moved to the No. 1 spot in the country . The Spartans held the No. 1 spot for three weeks before losing to North Carolina in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge . The Spartans cruised through the remaining non-conference schedule , finishing 11 – 1 , to begin the Big Ten season ranked No. 5 in the country . The Spartans won their first seven conference games , but due to injuries to Keith Appling , Adriean Payne , and Brendan Dawson , MSU lost five of their last eight conference games to finish in a second-place tie with Wisconsin at 12 – 6 . The Spartans , finally healthy and at full strength , beat Northwestern , No. 12 Wisconsin , and No. 8 Michigan to capture the Big Ten Tournament championship . This marked Michigan State 's fourth tournament championship . Michigan State earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament 's East Region . With wins against Delaware and Harvard , they advanced to the Sweet Sixteen for the third straight year and the 12th time in 17 years . They defeated No. 1-seeded Virginia in the Sweet Sixteen to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2010 . There they fell to No. 7 seed and eventual National Champion , Connecticut . With the loss , the Tom Izzo 's Final Four streak ended . Shortly after the season , Gary Harris declared for the NBA Draft
Big Ten Tournament
2014 Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
Michigan State Spartans men's basketball