EAST LANSING — Tom Izzo remembered it. Jason Richardson heard enough about it. Big Ten Network devoted an hour documentary to telling the story of it: Michigan State basketball’s center-court kiss and the genesis behind Shawn Respert’s legendary smooch 30 years ago and Mateen Cleaves’ revival in 2000 that made it an annual event.
On Sunday, with a season sweep over rival Michigan secured, Tre Holloman delivered perhaps the third-most iconic kiss in the history of the Spartans’ senior tradition. Except he’s a junior. And it started with a push.
Holloman shoved two Wolverines standing on the midcourt logo and disrupting the tradition in the waning seconds of No. 7 MSU’s 79-62 victory at Breslin Center, which closed out the Spartans’ outright Big Ten regular-season championship. The gesture embodied everything Izzo built his program on — toughness, togetherness, loyalty.
“You don’t stand on that court when the seniors are coming out. And in that moment,” said Richardson, the former MSU and NBA great, and the father of Spartan freshman Jase, during the postgame celebration. “What Tre did is what Michigan State basketball is.”
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Holloman, who had a career-high 20 points, has increasingly proven to be the fiery leader Izzo has looked for over the past few seasons. From the 6-foot-2, 185-pound Minneapolis native barking in the face of Purdue’s 7-4 Zach Edey at last year’s Big Ten tournament in his hometown, to getting into a verbal spat with Iowa’s Brock Harding in Thursday’s comeback at Iowa, Holloman has shown he won’t back down from a challenge.
The latest came with 37.2 seconds left Sunday and the Spartans leading, 79-60.
Holloman delivered an foul on U-M’s Justin Pippen to stop the clock and allow Izzo to sub out his seniors — Frankie Fidler, Szymon Zapala and Jaden Akins — who then headed to kiss the Spartan helmet at center court.
Fidler checked out after Pippen made his first free throw, getting long embraces from his teammates before lowering himself and kissing the logo. He had to slide slightly to the right because U-M freshmen Phat Phat Brooks and L.J. Cason were standing on the middle of the floor. Akins later said he had asked them to move.
Then it was time for Zapala. As the 7-footer hugged his replacement, Kur Teng, Brooks — the only in-state player on U-M’s roster — and Cason remained planted in place. Holloman turned and said he also told them to move. When they still didn’t, he put one hand on each player’s chest and pushed them off the logo.
“They’re not moving. I’m like, what?” Holloman recalled later. “So then I had to move them.”
First-year U-M coach Dusty May responded gruffly when asked about the incident.
“There’s not a tradition that we can’t stand at halfcourt as the game’s going. I’m not familiar with that one,” he said. “Is that a tradition?”
When told of MSU’s midcourt kiss, May continued: “Oh yeah, no problem with that. … It took a while. But we’re fine with that. They’ve earned the right for that. The seniors have poured their hearts out.
“As far as whatever happened, are we not allowed to stand at halfcourt while they’re (sic) shooting a free throw? Oh, you are? So he walked up and — I mean, look, they earned the right to rub our noses in it.”
An interesting phrasing by May, considering U-M’s history in creating MSU’s tradition.
Respert began the tradition in his final home game against Wisconsin in 1995, an homage to both his love for Breslin and a cleansing from the 1993 game when Jalen Rose and the Fab Five rubbed their rears on MSU’s at-the-time Block S midcourt logo. Rose later admitted to doing it, and Izzo said the two have previously discussed it.
Jason Richardson, whose younger son Jaxon is a 2026 recruit being courted by U-M, said Holloman’s display followed the lineage of former program greats. By the time Holloman got back to his locker after the celebration, he’d already heard from Mateen Cleaves, Cassius Winston and others about the moment.
“They don’t call us Spartan Dawgs for no reason,” said the elder Richardson, who was part of Izzo’s 2000 national title team and 2001 Final Four team that both won Big Ten titles. “I expect every last guy that played in this program, they know what it is. I know Dusty May is a good coach. I’ve talked to their coaching staff and my son’s (getting) recruited by them. But they gotta understand traditions.”
Holloman and Cason both were issued technical fouls, and Izzo pulled Holloman in the waning seconds.
“(Izzo) just said, ‘Be smart.’ That’s it, really,” Holloman said. “Just be like smart, because we got the Big Ten tournament coming up.”
During the postgame senior day ceremony, Izzo spoke to the crowd and brought football coach Jonathan Smith and former football coach Mark Dantonio to the floor. He also summoned his former players of all eras to celebrate.
And he delivered a succinct message about the late-game incident.
“I give Michigan a lot of credit. (May) has done a hell of a job,” Izzo said. “But we have a freakin’ tradition here. Nobody — NOBODY — is changing our tradition.”
Akins was able to kiss the logo unfettered after the shoving match. When asked about what his fellow captain Holloman did to ensure that, the senior guard from Farmington said it meant a lot.
“It just goes to show the type of person he is, the type of player he is,” said Akins, who had 11 points. “He’s just all heart, really. Tenacity. And I feel like he just wasn’t gonna stand for that, and I’m happy he did what he did.”
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MSU (26-5, 17-3 Big Ten) ended up three games ahead of second-place U-M (22-9, 14-6) and Maryland in the final standings. The Spartans are the No. 1 seed in next week’s Big Ten tournament and will open play at noon Friday against the winner between No. 8 seed Oregon and No. 9 seed Indiana. Those two tip off at noon Thursday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
After the Spartans raised a championship banner for the first time since 2020, MSU athletic director Alan Haller said Izzo’s record-tying 11th Big Ten championship and fifth outright crown “is probably his best piece of work in his 30 years.”
He then shifted to where Holloman’s personal Battle of Thermopylae might rank him among other Spartans in the annals of program lore.
“I don’t know before today. But after today and what happened, he’s in my top three easily,” said Haller, who played football for George Perles and in the NFL. “I wish the kid would have played football. I love that mentality. Protect your home, protect your court. Be respectful. He showed a true Spartan mentality today.”
The irony, of course, being that this was MSU’s final home game of the season — it’s all neutral sites ahead in the Big Ten tournament next week in Indianapolis and the upcoming NCAA tournament.
Izzo then paid Holloman the ultimate compliment. In a season where “be different” is one of the mottos, Izzo summoned his co-captain while talking to the crowd after the banner raising and senior sendoff. A special moment no other underclassman — even those expected to be leaving for the NBA — previously were granted was his request.
“This one time,” Izzo said, with Holloman putting his arm around the coach, “kiss that freakin’ S.”
Holloman smiled wide, walked to the spot where he shoved the U-M players, bent down and kissed the floor. Dantonio and Smith shook his hand as he stood up.
The home crowd — all of whom stayed — roared in approval.
“It kind of meant a lot, man,” Holloman said of Izzo. “It seems like coach has a lot of respect in me and trusts me. … This is home. I love it here, I bleed green. I’m just happy and blessed to be here.”
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State basketball: Tre Holloman shove shows Izzo’s top traits
