Tom Izzo is not a coach who hides how he feels. On Tuesday night in Chicago, his fifth-ranked Michigan State team was playing some of its best basketball in years against No. 2 Duke. Then one play stopped the game, and the TV cameras swung straight toward the Spartans’ sideline.

Cameras caught Izzo fired up and shouting at the officials after Duke’s Patrick Ngongba II slipped and hit Michigan State’s Jesse McCulloch while players were passing the ball.

The moment came in the middle of a game that Michigan State has controlled so far. The Spartans led wire to wire in the first quarter and went into the break up 34-25, using their physical style to build a 10-point lead. Duke started 0-of-8 from three-point range and shot just 7-of-27 from the floor in the half.

Jordan Scott had five blocks, and Cameron Ward added 11 points off the bench. In the second half, the Spartans have kept pushing, and at the time of writing, they lead 64-51.

It is easy to see why every call feels big to Tom Izzo. This is the 16th Champions Classic, and it is Michigan State’s first trip back to the United Center since a 74-65 loss to Duke in 2023. The Spartans are just 1-4 against the Blue Devils in the event.

Izzo’s overall record against Duke is 3-15, and he has not beaten fifth-year Duke coach Jon Scheyer in two tries, including a 66-60 loss at the Breslin Center last season. Michigan State’s only win over Duke in the Champions Classic came in 2020, and Izzo’s other wins in the series came in 2019 and in the 2005 Sweet 16.

Tom Izzo had told reporters how much the event means to him.

“I’ve said all along that there’s memory-making moments in my job,” he said on Monday. “And one of the biggest memory-making moments is when we started the [Champions Classic].”

He also knew this Duke team would be a tough puzzle. Last season, the Blue Devils had stars like Cameron Boozer to build a plan around. This year, they have no one dominant star but a deep roster of eight to 10 players.

Izzo said before the game, “I think it’s a harder one to guard.” Ngongba leads Duke at 19.0 points per game, and he even played Tuesday despite being under the weather.

That is what makes the lead so important for the Spartans. Duke has gone cold in the second half, and the Blue Devils can’t afford to let it slip further. They still have not found a way to break through against Michigan State’s defense. Izzo, meanwhile, has the Spartans in position to hand the Blue Devils their first loss of the season and finally get past Scheyer.

The game is still going, and a lead can change quickly. But if Michigan State holds on, the moment the cameras caught on Tom Izzo’s face may end up as just one more part of a memory he has waited a long time to make.