After 22 years with Michigan State basketball, long-time assistant coach Mike Garland has announced his retirement. Garland served as a special assistant to Tom Izzo last year and has been on the staff since 1996, helping lead the Spartans to the 2000 National Championship, seven Final Fours, 20 NCAA Tournaments, six Big Ten Tournament Championships and 10 Big Ten Regular Season titles.
Garland released this statement on his retirement:
“I’ve worked alongside so many great people here, but the part of the job I’ve always cared for most has been the opportunity to work with young men and impact their lives, each of whom I wish I could mention by name.
“There have been a lot of successful moments on the court here and that’s what Tom has built, one of the best college basketball programs in the country. It’s been an honor to be a part of those championships and Final Fours and to see so many of our players go on to play professionally. I’ve been just as proud to see so many of our players have success in the business world and to become fathers with wonderful families.
“You don’t get the chance to work with a friend for so long like I have with Tom Izzo since we met at Northern Michigan in the early 1970s. He gave me the opportunity to be a part of this program when he became the head coach in 1996 and there is nothing I regret about the decision.
“My wife, Cynthia, and my family have grown up here and Michigan State is a very special place and will always be part of us.
“I always thought that Chief (Tom) and I would share the day of our departure together. And of course I could have given him a few more years to make that dream come true, like all the others we have shared together. But after several months of thought and reflection, while sitting at the hospital bedside of my son (Michael Ray), I decided it was best for my family, while I’m in great health, to give up the game I love to pour more of myself into my wife, my children and eight grandchildren.”
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