Xavier Tillman FUCKING Senior!

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Someday, he needs to show his son the tape of this game against the potential "POTY" not only in the big ten but nationally.   Tell him, that was the first time he put a Jersey on that "Tillman Sr."

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Cool pictures but in case you guys can't get the LSJ here are the words:

How one block against Luka Garza made Xavier Tillman Sr. a name to remember at Michigan State

EAST LANSING - Xavier Tillman tugged his Michigan State jersey over his bulging shoulders ahead of yet another Big Ten game and felt something different. This was the white game jersey, No. 23 like always, but now two new letters were added to the back:

Sr.

This was his privilege after becoming a father to a son, Xavier Tillman Jr., just eight days ago.

It also gave him added responsibility: To play in a way that would make people remember his new name.

Tillman's first task in the new look was as giant as they come. Luka Garza stands 6 feet, 11 inches and weighs 260 pounds, a towering force who averages 23.7 points and 9.6 rebounds a game and headlines the conversation about who will be the national player of the year.
Taking on Garza and No. 18 Iowa in an effort to power back into the Big Ten title race would require every bit of energy Xavier Tillman Sr. could muster. But early on in Tuesday night's bout at the Breslin Center, Tillman received exactly what he's been getting very little of at home with his new son: rest.

Two early fouls that had little to do with guarding Garza sent him to the bench to wither and wait.

He watched as Garza bullied and battered Michigan State's undersized or inexperienced underclassmen, from Marcus Bingham to Julius Marble to Malik Hall. In one stretch late in the first half, Garza took four straight Iowa possessions for layups, capping the half with 12 points as Iowa led Michigan State by six.

"He's up for the best player in the Big Ten, and I just wanted to see how I matched up against him," Tillman said.

"I wanted to get in so bad."

Tillman took the court after halftime determined to stay there. Whatever he did on Garza, however it went, he could not foul. Whoever was going to lose this battle of big men would do so by looking up at the victor.

Tillman stood strong on the block and pulled his arms back when Garza went to shoot. He'd accept shots over the top of him before he'd allow Garza to run through him.

Garza still scored eight points, but bit by bit, the game started to turn. His six missed shots and other empty possessions sent the Spartans running in the open court, where Cassius Winston drilled 3-pointers and found teammates for some of theirs.

In a blur, Michigan State went from down 10 to up six with 1:30 to go. The crowd was on its feet, shaking the ground with its screams.

hat's when Iowa went to Garza again.

He grabbed the ball on the block as Tillman met him at his waist. Garza dribbled twice to the left before spinning back and elevating with his elbow out. He threw a shot up as Tillman leaped, and the ball met Tillman's palm in the air.

After Garza got the ball and was called for traveling, Tillman started flexing and screaming at the floor. He punched the air as he shouted, "Let's go!"

It just shows who he is," Aaron Henry said.

Tillman's block was the closing highlight in Michigan State's 78-70 win over Iowa to keep its Big Ten hopes alive. He finished with seven points, six rebounds, two blocks and two steals on a night where stats will never tell the story.

"That was as high-level a game as has been played here -- physically, mentally," MSU coach Tom Izzo said. "The player of the game for me, without even blinking an eyelash, was Xavier Tillman."

"He willed us."

Izzo then started to make a case, for the first time this season, for Tillman to be the defensive player of the year in the Big Ten. The junior forward has been the centerpiece of a stout defense all year, Izzo said, and he felt tonight's showing against Garza showed something unique.

"It was the difference," Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said.

The win didn't cement anything special. At 19-9 and 11-6 in the Big Ten, Michigan State is still 1 1/2 games back of Maryland, though it will have a shot against the Terrapins on Saturday.

The win did create a piece of history. Tillman's block on Garza in the final minutes was his 147th at Michigan State, now the most any player has achieved in school history.

By placing a hand on a ball, Tillman etched a name in the history books. It'll now read like his game jersey did:

Xavier Tillman Sr.

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