Michigan
Is Michigan State safe from the NCAA Tournament bubble? Selection Sunday anxiety builds
East Lansing, Mich. – When Michigan State played Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals on Friday, it didn’t feel like a must-win situation, but it might have been.
The Spartans wake up this morning in a more precarious NCAA Tournament bubble predicament than most observers anticipated.
At stake is Michigan State’s streak of 25 straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament. That’s the third longest in college basketball history. The Spartans can overtake North Carolina’s streak of 27 and post the second-longest streak in history if the Spartans make The Big Dance this year and the next two years.
Tom Izzo’s streak of 25 consecutive appearances is the most by any coach in the history of the game.
Those streaks are on the line today as the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee meets to decide the fate of several bubble teams, one of which is Michigan State. This will likely be the most uneasy Selection Sunday of the past 26 years for Izzo and Michigan State.
With North Carolina State winning the ACC’s automatic bid and Oregon winning the Pac-12’s automatic bid, those two surprise teams stole bids from teams that were previously on the bubble. That means teams that weren’t on the bubble a couple of days ago have been bumped down a couple of pegs into the danger zone – and Michigan State is one of them.
ESPN’s Joe Lunardi had Michigan State comfortably in the tournament two days ago. But now he has the Spartans as one of the “last four in.” He has the Spartans a notch below TCU, and a notch ahead of Oklahoma and Colorado. That’s a thin margin of error for Michigan State.
Lunardi is well-respected for his projections, but there are occasionally Selection Sunday surprises, enough to make Spartans fans sweat when the brackets are announced at 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Lunardi has Michigan State playing Oklahoma in a “First Four” game in Dayton, for the right to play No. 7 seed Gonzaga in Salt Lake City. The survivor would face No. 2 seed Arizona if the chalk holds.
CBS’s Jerry Palm has the Spartans somewhat comfortably in as a No. 10 seed. He has Dayton, St. John’s, Northwestern and Texas A&M as the last four in. He has Pitt, Colorado, Virginia and Seton Hall as the first four out.
Lunardi has St. John’s, Virginia, Seton Hall and Indiana State as the “first four out.”
Lunardi and Palm disagree about their first four out and last four in – again, enough to make Michigan State fans squeamish about a lack of consensus.
The NET ranking is a key metric to keep an eye on. That’s a ranking the NCAA Selection Committee has valued above all others in recent years. No team ranked outside the Top 30 in the NET has ever failed to get an NCAA Tournament bid. But that could change this year.
Michigan State has a strong No. 25 ranking in the NET. Colorado is No. 24. Indiana State is No. 30, and both major bracketologists are projecting that the Sycamores aren’t going to make the field.
Dayton appears strong at No. 23 in the NET with a 24-7 record.
Northwestern had a better Big Ten season than Michigan State but has a NET ranking of No. 54, due in part to a non-conference strength of schedule which ranks No. 330, compared to Michigan State’s No. 44.
St. John’s (No. 34), Seton Hall (No. 66) and Virginia (No. 55), each of whom Lunardi has out, don’t have strong NET rankings.
Palm has St. John’s and Northwestern in. He has Pitt (No. 41 in the NET) and Colorado (No. 24 in the NET) out.
Colorado out with a No. 24 NET? Again, these conflicting interpretations are enough to cause Spartan palpitations. The comparisons are dizzying.
Palm seems to be the bracketologist who is most bullish on Michigan State. He has the Spartans playing against No. 7 Gonzaga in Omaha, with the winner playing No. 2 seed Iowa State if the chalk holds.
Playing Iowa State in Omaha would be a major problem for any team. Iowa State is red hot after racing through the Big 12 Conference Tournament and has a huge fan following that will travel to Omaha in large, loud numbers.
Iowa State will have a home court advantage against whichever team it faces in the Second Round. That would be a difficult date for Michigan State, but one that most Spartan fans would accept, if they could, considering the air of uncertainty that will accompany Selection Sunday’s bracket announcements.
Tom Izzo (Photo by Junfu Han | USA Today Network).
Michigan
Michigan health expert talks impact of Canadian wildfire smoke: There’s really a long list of who is at risk”
The current air quality in Michigan has doctors, especially cardiologists, concerned for their patients.
Dr. Herb Aronow, the chair of heart and vascular health at Henry Ford Health, says unhealthy air affects everyone with heart and vascular diseases, even those who haven’t been diagnosed yet.
“There’s really a long list of who is at risk,” said Aronow.
That’s why Aronow wants people to be aware and prepared. While many may think breathing in unhealthy air will only impact your lungs, Aronow says wildfires produce microscopic particles that can get into your blood.
“Once they are there, they create problems with inflammation and other mechanisms and we all know inflammation leads to heart disease and can lead to those with heart disease to have events,” said Aronow.
Aronow says this could lead to someone needing emergency care, but there are ways to protect yourself.
“If you have a symptom that’s suspicious for heart disease, you need to seek attention immediately, and more often than not, that’s means you need to call 911,” said Aronow.
The best way to avoid harmful air is to stay in an air-conditioned space. If you have an indoor air filter that can also reduce the poor air coming into your home.
“If you already have heart or blood vessel disease and you need to be outdoors for some reason is that you can wear a N95 respirator an N95 mask. Those are very effective,” said Aronow.
If you must go outside, check the air quality at the location you are at or plan to visit.
Michigan
University of Michigan’s David C. Miller chosen to succeed Jeff Balser as Vanderbilt Health’s President and CEO and Dean of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
David C. Miller, MD, MPH, Chief Executive Officer of Michigan Medicine and Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs for the University of Michigan, has been chosen to succeed Jeff Balser, MD, PhD, as the next President and CEO of Vanderbilt Health and Dean of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. Miller will assume the role at Vanderbilt on Jan. 1, 2027.
Earlier this year, Balser announced plans to retire on Dec. 31, after serving Vanderbilt in both leadership roles for nearly two decades.
Miller’s selection as the new senior leader for Vanderbilt Health (VH) and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine (VUSM) finalizes an extensive national search by the VH Board of Directors to identify Balser’s successor.
“From an incredibly strong field of applicants, Dr. Miller’s personal warmth, prior leadership experiences, and commitment to organizational culture stood out. David has presented an exciting vision for advancing the Medical Center’s missions and is the ideal candidate to succeed Dr. Balser. We look forward to welcoming David, his wife, Inge, and family to the Nashville community,” said Edie Carell Johnson, JD, Chair of the VH Board of Directors.
“On behalf of the Board, I want to again express my deep appreciation to Dr. Balser for his many years of dedication to the Medical Center’s growth and success. Jeff will be remembered for his commitment to excellence and as a leader whose contributions will continue to impact generations of patients and families now and into the future.”
Miller has spent the bulk of his career with the University of Michigan and Michigan Medicine where he has held a variety of administrative and academic roles and has been instrumental in enhancing quality, safety and patient experience and expanding access to health care services across Michigan through operational growth and strategic partnerships.
Similar in size and scale to Vanderbilt Health, Michigan Medicine is a statewide academic health system with 12 hospitals, 5,800 clinicians, 2,500 physicians-in-training, 97,000 annual discharges, 4.7 million outpatient visits and $820 million in annual research awards.
As the new leader of VH and VUSM, Miller will be responsible for shaping the institution’s core missions of advancing health care delivery, scientific discovery, health care training and education, and community engagement while championing a culture of collaboration, service and clinical excellence amidst a period of rapid growth.
“Serving as CEO and Dean has been tremendously rewarding, and I’m forever grateful for everyone’s support. I want to congratulate Dr. Miller and welcome him into the Vanderbilt family,” said Balser. “David is a seasoned leader with deep, career-long experience in our core missions of health care, research and teaching. He joins us at an exciting and transformative moment in history. I am confident he will sustain our positive momentum while nurturing the distinctive and caring culture we all treasure.”
Miller will be responsible for the development, implementation and fulfillment of strategies spanning VH and VUSM and will be central to maintaining the scholarly activities shared by the Medical Center and University.
“Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt Health together form one of the largest and most eminent research enterprises in American higher education — one that turns discovery into better treatments and educates the next generation of physicians and scientists,” said Daniel Diermeier, PhD, Chancellor, Vanderbilt University. “Our School of Medicine sits at the heart of that work, which is why this appointment matters well beyond our campus. I am delighted to welcome Dr. Miller as its Dean and a partner in this transformative work, and I look forward to what we will accomplish together.”
Prior to his service as the CEO of Michigan Medicine, Miller served as Executive Vice Dean for Clinical Affairs for the University of Michigan Medical School and President of U-M Health, a clinical enterprise with approximately 20,000 employees caring for more than 1.3 million patients, where he oversaw all aspects of strategic, operational, clinical, cultural and financial performance. During his tenure at Michigan Medicine, Miller also led the clinical, business and cultural integration of the statewide academic health system.
Before serving as U-M Health’s President, Miller served as Chief Clinical Officer for Michigan Medicine’s University Hospital and the Frankel Cardiovascular Center. As a Professor in the Department of Urology, he also maintained a clinical practice focused on the diagnosis and management of patients with prostate cancer.
Miller has been awarded research funding for urologic cancer by the National Institutes of Health, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and the American Cancer Society. A frequently invited speaker on urologic cancer, Miller is the author or co-author of more than 300 peer-reviewed articles, editorials and abstracts. In addition to his clinical practice, Miller served as Director of the Michigan Urological Surgery Improvement Collaborative (MUSIC) from 2011 through 2020, a coalition of more than 40 urology practices improving urological care in Michigan.
“I am honored to be named the leader of one of the most highly regarded academic health care organizations in the country,” Miller said. “Vanderbilt is synonymous with exemplary patient care and world-leading innovation and medical education; I am humbled to be following in Dr. Balser’s footsteps. I am eager to begin meeting faculty, staff and students to learn what makes Vanderbilt such an exceptional organization with an unparalleled culture. My wife, Inge, and I are also excited about getting to know Nashville and the entire state.”
Miller earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Michigan, Doctor of Medicine from Washington University School of Medicine, and a Master of Public Health with emphasis in epidemiology from the University of Michigan School of Public Health. His residency training in urology was at the University of Michigan, followed by a health services research and clinical fellowship in urologic oncology at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Related
Pollster Richard Czuba breaks latest Michigan Senate race polling
Detroit News political reporter Craig Mauger talks with pollster Craig Richard Czuba about the latest poll in Michigan’s Democratic Senate race.
About half of likely Michigan Democratic primary voters hold an unfavorable view of the pro-Israel group the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, according to a new statewide poll, but respondents overall didn’t rate a candidate’s position on Israel and Gaza as of great importance when choosing a Senate nominee.
“It is not of high interest, despite the national narrative,” pollster Richard Czuba said, referring to national news coverage of the Michigan U.S. Senate contest.
“As you ask voters to look across the spectrum about issues that matter to them, this isn’t one of them.”
The Detroit News/WDIV-TV (Channel 4) poll of 500 likely Michigan Democratic primary voters was conducted last week by Czuba’s Glengariff Group and had a margin of error of plus-minus 4.4 percentage points.
A majority of respondents said antisemitism against Jewish Americans has risen, that they support both a Palestinian state and Israel’s right to exist, and believe Israel has “gone too far” in its war against the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah.
Overall, the likely Michigan Democratic primary voters rated a Senate candidate’s position on Israel and Gaza at 5.6 on a 10-point scale. Czuba said a measurement over 7 usually indicates some level of importance, while 8 is considered demonstrating a high level of importance.
Supporters of Michigan Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed of Ann Arbor rated the issue a 6, while those backing U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens of Birmingham rated it 5.2. Undecided voters in the survey were at 5.7.
“That’s not surprising to me at all,” said consultant Adrian Hemond, a Democrat and CEO of Grassroots Midwest.
“It’s hard to get Americans to care about foreign policy while American troops are not getting shot, and that’s not happening right now. That’s not to say they don’t care about it at all, but in terms of what influences their voting behavior? Nah.”
Half of Michigan Democrats sour on AIPAC
Israel and Gaza have been a point of contrast and contention between El-Sayed and Stevens: Stevens is a staunch supporter of Israel who has voted for U.S. military aid for that country, while El-Sayed has called Israel’s actions in Gaza a genocide. He wants to end the U.S. practice of subsidizing foreign militaries, including Israel’s.
El-Sayed has also repeatedly hit Stevens on the $49 million of outside spending — including $26 million from an AIPAC-aligned group — that’s flowed into the race to help boost her bid, according to recent ad-tracking figures.
“Explain what you’ve given away for AIPAC support in this race,” El-Sayed demanded in last week’s televised debate in Grand Rapids.
“No one owns my vote, and no one owns my policies,” Stevens shot back.
In the debate last week, Stevens pointed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s criticism of her and said Netanyahu had “failed” in securing long-term peace and in providing humanitarian aid in Gaza. The remark appeared to be an effort to put some distance between herself and the support she’s getting from AIPAC that has turned off some Democrats.
“I can say that Israel has a right to peacefully exist alongside the people of Palestine and in Gaza,” she said.
The poll conducted last week found that 49% of Democratic primary voters have an unfavorable opinion of AIPAC. About 12% view AIPAC favorably, and 39% were neutral ― with no opinion of the pro-Israel lobby group ― or said they didn’t know. About 34% of voters expressed a “very” unfavorable opinion of AIPAC.
About 65% of El-Sayed’s supporters expressed an unfavorable view of AIPAC, with 8% favorable and 26% neutral, while fewer Stevens’ voters, 38%, view AIPAC unfavorably and 16.5% favorably, with 45% neutral.
The group does not seem to be a motivating issue for undecided voters, 65% of whom were neutral on AIPAC, according to poll results.
“What this issue has become is virtue-signaling to the far left that you’re one of us,” Czuba said of AIPAC opposition.
Scott Cruz, 61, of South Lyon, said he learned about AIPAC about six months ago, but has been concerned for decades about the amount of money the U.S. gives to Israel. In more recent years, what started as Israel’s understandable response to the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas has advanced far beyond that, said Cruz, who participated in the poll.
“Just too nuts, man. Hatfields and McCoys, I don’t care,” Cruz said of the Israel-Gaza conflict. “They (Israel) had the moral high ground for a minute there and then said, ‘Let’s blow it.’”
Michelle Miller-Adams, a 66-year-old Kalamazoo resident and political scientist who also participated in the poll, said she considers herself a politically progressive Jew.
She said she understands the criticism of Israel’s leadership but is worried that opposition to Israel and AIPAC is mixing dangerously with an increase in antisemitism.
“I’m not a fan of AIPAC,” Miller-Adams said. “But I think AIPAC has been demonized among all the PACs and has been misrepresented. AIPAC gets singled out for criticism in a way that makes me very uncomfortable.”
Rebecca Cunningham, an 83-year-old Detroit resident, said she’s voting for Stevens because of her prior experience at the federal level. She’s aware of a debate over Israel and is concerned by the U.S. government’s actions there, but she doesn’t believe those concerns are the only factors in determining her vote.
“I’d have to look at the whole picture,” Cunningham said. “In my mind, I’m not really clear why we’re over there fighting. We have enough issues in the United States we could put our attention to.”
Alignment among Michigan Democrats on Mideast issues
The survey of Michigan Democrats showed they are largely in agreement on issues related to the Middle East, including 63% of whom support the creation of an independent Palestinian state in Gaza. Another 15% said they oppose a Palestinian state, while 22% said it would depend or they didn’t know.
Notably, 78% of El-Sayed supporters favor a Palestinian state with 13% unsure, compared with 51% of Stevens’ voters in support of an independent state with 26% unsure. Undecided voters fell between the two, with 61% for an independent state and 38.5% unsure.
A large majority of Democrats surveyed, nearly 77%, said Israel has a right to exist as a country, while 12% are opposed and 12% of voters were unsure or said it depends.
On this question, 67% of self-identified Democratic Socialists said they support Israel’s right to exist, while 30% are opposed, and 2% said they’re unsure or it depends. Nearly 21% of Democratic Socialists said they “strongly” oppose Israel’s right to exist.
El-Sayed, the son of Egyptian immigrants, pivoted last week when he was asked on CNN if Israel has a right to exist.
“The question about a right to exist is interesting, because nobody’s ever asked me whether I believe Palestine has a right to exist. Every single president who’s served has said they believe in a two-state solution,” El-Sayed said.
“Israel exists. The question is whether we want a politics where our money is sent over to Israel to fund genocide and apartheid instead of investing in our own kids.”
Nearly 70% of poll respondents said Israel’s actions against Hamas and Hezbollah have “gone too far.” About 3% said they’ve not gone far enough, and 13% said they’ve been about right, while 15% were unsure, according to the survey.
About 21% of Stevens’ supporters in the survey said Israel’s actions were about right, as opposed to 6% of El-Sayed voters and 2% of undecided voters.
About two in three likely Michigan Democratic voters said antisemitism against Jewish Americans has increased over the past two years, and 3% said it’s declined. Nearly 24% said the level of antisemitism has stayed the same, and 9% were unsure.
Younger voters (under 55 years old) disproportionately concluded that antisemitism has stayed the same or decreased, while higher numbers of older voters said antisemitism has grown, including 76% of respondents age 65 and older.
More Stevens supporters said that antisemitism has increased (71%) than backers of El-Sayed (57%).
mburke@detroitnews.com
eleblanc@detroitnews.com
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