Before Shannon became one of the most explosive players in the NBA and one of the most important pieces off of the Lakers bench, he spent three seasons at Michigan State under Tom Izzo.
Shannon reached the tournament in all three years at Michigan State but his best run came in his sophomore season in 2005.
In 2005 the Spartans, ranked 5th in their region, made an improbably run to the Final 4 thanks in large part to the play of Shannon Brown.
Brown averaged 13.8 points per game in the 2005 tournament, but his game against Kentucky during the round of 8 is what stands out. In the double overtime thriller against Kentucky, the Spartans punched their ticket to the Final 4 behind Brown’s 24 points on just 10 shots, including a 5-6 effort from behind the 3-point line.
Brown followed up his career high effort with a 15 point performance against North Carolina, but Sean May and Raymond Felton were too much as the Tar Heels prevailed.
Brown’s college career ended rather unceremoniously in 2006 when Michigan State was upset by soon to be Cinderella George Mason. Brown scored just 5 points in a losing effort.
Next: Two Lakers rookies who had opposite results in last year’s tournament