Former Michigan State basketball player Paul Davis called a news conference Tuesday at the school, apologizing for his comment in Monday’s Spartans win over Southern Cal that got him ejected and “ticked off” Tom Izzo.
“Yesterday shouldn’t have happened, but today needs to happen,” Davis told reporters. “And I’m not up here to offer any excuses, I’m up here to take accountability, to own it.”
Davis, a star big man for MSU from 2002-06 who was drafted by the LA Clippers in the second round of the 2006 NBA Draft, had seats near courtside at Breslin Center during Monday’s 80-51 rout of the Trojans. With about six minutes left, he said something to referee Jeffrey Anderson after a foul call, which prompted Anderson to blow his whistle and signal for Davis to be ejected.
Anderson then walked across the floor to explain to Izzo what Davis said. Izzo nodded, looked across the floor at his former player and shouted, “What are you doing?”
Izzo said after the game, which marked his 750th win, that Davis was “150 percent wrong” in what he said and added: “For a guy like me to 150 percent agree with an official, it’s almost illegal.
“What he said, he should never say anywhere in the world, and that ticked me off,” Izzo said. “So just because it’s 25, 20 years later, I’m gonna have to call him tomorrow and tell him what I thought of it. And you know what he’ll say? ‘I screwed up coach, sorry.’”
Izzo added that the comment “wasn’t something racial, it wasn’t something sexual. It was just the wrong thing to say, and I’ll leave it at that.”
Odd moment in Michigan State-USC. After being consulted by the referee, it appears Tom Izzo asks former Spartan, Paul Davis, to leave his seat. pic.twitter.com/rix9qIyEnd
— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 6, 2026
Davis responded the next day, apologizing to Izzo, both teams, the fans, the university and Anderson. He said he had a call earlier in the day with Anderson, which was “an amazing conversation, amazing guy.” He also said he apologized directly to the players. And he apologized to the parents of kids who look up to Michigan State players as role models.
“That doesn’t stop when you leave,” said Davis, the program’s 10th all-time scorer with 1,718 points, who starred on the way to the 2005 Final Four. “Last night, they did not see a role model, but I promise you any other time they see me, it will be a role model.”
Davis said he plans to attend Thursday’s home game against Northwestern as well. The No. 12 Spartans (13-2) have “Izzone Alumni” games this week with students still on winter break, inviting alumni to fill the seats in the lower bowl and try to replicate Breslin’s traditionally raucous atmosphere.
Izzo took part in Davis’ news conference Tuesday as well and said: “We are a family. … We will hold each other accountable, but we will support one another.”
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