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NCAA MEN'S 1ST AND 2ND ROUNDS: ST. LOUISMarch 17, 2016Tom IzzoSt. Louis, Missouri THE MODERATOR: Michigan State coach Tom Izzo is now with us. Coach, an opening statement. TOM IZZO: I love St. Louis. I wish we could play them, because they've been very kind to us over the years. But unfortunately there's other people we have to play in St. Louis. And I think we're playing a team and Kermit's team is very well coached. They run a lot of things. They play a lot of different defenses. They have five guys that can shoot it and they've got the leading three-point shooter, percentage-wise, in the country. So it creates different problems for us that maybe we're used to in our league when you've got five guys shooting threes in that starting group. But at the same time I'm really excited and feel privileged that we're here and we're here with a good team. And whether it ends up a great team, I guess that's what the next week, two weeks, three weeks are for. Q. Tom, I've only watched two of their games so I apologize if this is not indicative of them but they're extremely unselfish with their help defense. They love to help. Because you have so many weapons maybe, though, that they're not used to facing, does that give you an opportunity when they're being extremely unselfish to maybe punish them? TOM IZZO: I hope so. You know, I think we both create some problems for each other, and that's kind of what the NCAA Tournament is all about, facing people that are different than the ones you've faced. And you know, they're very good defensively. They're not real big, but they're very athletic, they're very long. And like I said, well coached. I mean, he can coach. Now, I've known that for 20, 30 years. You know, shooters gotta make shots. You can't turn the ball over. You can't get in foul trouble. I mean, it's the same old things. It's like watching the Super Bowl. When they talk about the things you've gotta do there, you can't turn it over, you gotta play good defense. Quarterback's gotta make some plays. Kind of the same in all sports. We're in a baseball city, pitchers don't pitch, hitters don't hit, you go home. That's kind of the way it is. Q. The one veteran on your roster that hasn't been through this is Eron Harris. And Denzel Valentine a year ago talking about that being the type of guy that was really needed at points, especially when you got to play Duke. What can he provide now, and what has he learned from the beginning of the year about the stumbles he started with to now about a new experience and how to treat it? TOM IZZO: Well, Eron, along with Matt Costello, probably have been our two most-improved players because they've both jumped a lot. Eron is not scoring as much as he scored at West Virginia, but I think defensively he's grown a lot. And he's made us a better team because of his defense. And yet I still think he can score a lot. It's just that you can only share the ball with so many different people. So he's made big progress with his defense. And I think on the break we need him, his athletic ability to get out. And when he's open, he's got to knock down shots. At least Denzel will have one guy on each wing to pass to. And it will be harder to sag in on people if we get it into the post because he can shoot the three just as well as the other guys. Q. Your teams always seem to peak at this time of year, at the right time. I know all teams are different. But what is your general thought on reaching that crescendo with each team? TOM IZZO: Boy, that's a million-dollar question, and you know, I don't think it's me. I think it's the culture that we've built there. I think there's not a pressure, there's an expectation among players when they're playing in the summer and the former guys come back and our pro guys come back, whether it's Magic Johnson or Steve Smith, or whoever come back. People talk about the Final Four. People talk about winning championships. I think there's a culture there and an expectation that wherever you are at the beginning of the year you better get good enough by the end of the year. And I'm telling you, it's not being coached as much as it's being player coached. Denzel and Matt did an incredible job last year after we got beat by Duke at setting the standards. And they worked all spring, summer and fall at it. And I think we're reaping some of the benefits by having a good year. The problem is, you know, one of the best high school teams in the state of Michigan is in East Lansing and last night and they got upset by a 10-10 team. And one-and-done time is one-and-done. And one bad call, one sprained ankle. One bad shooting night and you know you're going home. And that's the uniqueness, even to the NBA. You know, best of seven would be good right now. I like my chances better. But I think we talk about that from the first day to the last. The "my bads" gotta start going away as the year goes on because when you have a "my bad" in March that means you're going home. Q. I want to ask you about Bryn coming out of high school, hometown kid, maybe wasn't good enough then for a scholarship. What did he do to get himself there? And have you had another player who has done something similar to what he's done? TOM IZZO: I think what he did in high school is the guy recruiting him probably did a bad job. I think he was probably good enough in high school, but we didn't see it that way or we didn't have the same need or we didn't have the scholarships. Because he was coached by Denzel's dad. He played with Denzel. I'd go watch Denzel after Denzel signed with us and he signed with Cleveland State, and there were times he was the best player on the floor. I feel fortunate, lucky to have him back. I'm not crazy about the rule, to be very honest about it. But I am fortunate that he's here and there's been a Shawn Respert, a Steve Smith, you know. There's been guys that can knock down knock-down shots -- Chris Hill -- but I don't know many better that I have had that can do it on a consistent basis like this kid has done it. Add that to the fact he's gotten bigger, stronger, way better defensively. He's improved his game a lot this past year and that puts him in the position he's in. Q. You mentioned the one-and-done at East Lansing. You mentioned Shawn Respert. Did you notice Weber State is in this pod? Will you use that for anything as your team? TOM IZZO: I've used up so many things with my team I've got nothing left. I've shown them and talked to them about Duke and about this team and about that team. And I talked to Shawn Respert the other day, when we got beat by Weber State. But this team has got something a little different, too. They've been to a Sweet 16, an Elite Eight, a Final Four. There's been three or four guys that have played in these deep runs. Winning that championship last week, it's not the end of the world but when you've got to play three games in three days against that kind of competition it kind of hardens you. It gets you ready. So I think what I gotta use for motivation, this team has not looked past anybody all year. And they really haven't. We haven't always played good. But I've never looked at it and said, oh boy, we practiced bad this week. There's been a day or two where I was, where if it's going too smooth you've got to be miserable just to make sure that you create some controversy. But it hasn't been anything that they've done and I think when you got good leadership like we've got, a player-coached team keeps that even keel, and I'm not going to use that as motivation. I'm going to use the motivation on what we've got to play for and not what happened 20 years ago or 10 years ago, even though I've done that in the past. I just think this is the time when it's about Michigan State getting better and that's what we're going to use. Q. You guys are one of the best, maybe arguably the best 3-point shooting teams in the country. Pretty high volume, incredibly high accuracy. 10, 15 years ago, a time a Michigan State didn't shoot too many 3-point shooters, I think that's safe to say. How did that kind of development happened, how you've adjusted to it. I see you laughing so maybe it took some psychological adjusting. And also if it's a very, a 3-pointer and relying on it, it's a very dangerous weapon but it's also a high variable weapon, and I wonder how you approach that coming into the one-and-done of March? TOM IZZO: I was just thinking what a polite way you said that. We couldn't shoot the ball in the ocean. It was well done. Jud Heathcote used to say, my best offense my first five years was the missed shot. So we'd go rebound it. But the 3-point -- that's what made last weekend so important. We didn't shoot the ball very well. And we found a way to beat quality teams. And it's why I love football so much. I'm not necessarily a Denver Bronco fan but I was a Denver Bronco fan this year because I'm always a fan of the best defensive teams. You look in college, pro, the best defensive teams are winning games. And if you start relying on that 3-point shot it's fool's gold, because sooner or later you're not going to make shots. I don't know if it's the wind in the arena or what it is, but you're not going to make shots. We didn't make a lot of shots last weekend. We found a way to grind it out and gut it out. And I thought that was as important for us, because you're not going to go through six games and just shoot the lights out to make a run in this tournament, just like you're not going to do three games in that, usually. We have been fairly consistent shooting the ball. But what I like more is we've been a very consistent defensive team and we've led the nation in rebounding, and those stats are more important to me than the 3-point, because I did think once or twice we were kind of becoming a team that relied on the 3-point shot, and I tried to rip that apart in practice a few times. I can promise you that. Q. Seems like you and Coach Dantonio's programs have really symbiotic relationship, you're really supportive of one another. You even took your kids to the Cotton Bowl, right? TOM IZZO: Yes. Q. How has your relationship with him and his particular philosophy impacted you as a coach? TOM IZZO: You know, it's been interesting when Mark was an assistant with Nick Saban, we got to be friends then. And I think Mark took some things from Ohio State and from Nick and I've stolen from every coach that has been good. I just look at good coaches. If I don't know them, I call them, and I try to steal from them. And I love football. I know I'm coming back in my second life, probably going to be in Div. VII, but I'm going to coach football somewhere. So Mark and I have been friends. I think I was involved a little bit in his hiring. I got to be on the committee. I just have tremendous respect for him. He does it the right way. He, too -- you know, I was the defensive coordinator at Ohio State when they won it. He was Nick's defensive guy. Nick's a defensive guy. Everybody wants the offensive guy. And I think they've done what we did this year: They were so good defensively the first couple of years and then they blended it with good offense. And I think that's what we've done this year. So Mark and I talk often. He called me before I left. I told him we're trying to get where he did. Maybe we drive each other. But it's in a very positive manner. It's one where I can call him and talk to him about a problem or how did you handle this. He called me about the hype of the Final Four and what that was like. I'm not sure we always do a great job for each other, but at least we're there for each other. It's pretty cool. Q. You've got three seniors who are playing in their final tournament, Colby in his fifth, and you've got three kids including Eron who are playing in their first NCAA Tournament. How do you kind of approach that with them? Is it a different approach for each, or you tell the team one thing and they just kind of run with it? TOM IZZO: I tell those three that are seniors that are playing their last one: You better make sure those rookies that are playing their first one understand that you don't have another day. And so that's your job. That's your job to tell them. And on the side I'll say don't get caught up that you can -- sometimes you may never get back to the NCAA Tournament. And they can't understand that. So I could preach to them all day long but they wouldn't understand it. The seniors are the reason why that relationship with this team is as close as any I've had is so valuable. Because I think those freshmen, sophomores and juniors want to send those seniors out the right way. And that's really a cool thing. Coaches die for that. And it's really good. Because then we don't have to intervene, it takes care of itself. Q. I know lately you guys have been playing extremely well. Obviously you won the conference tournament. Maybe not handily, but you still got it done. I was just wondering if there's any sort of sense of complacency within the team right now, or if you think that they know that the tournament is a completely different battle for them? TOM IZZO: I think they know it's a different battle. I've got a staff that's been through four, five Final Fours, and some players that have been through one and a Sweet 16 and Elite Eight. Complacency isn't really legal in our program at all. And if it is, we have the ability to get rid of it quick. I mean that about as forcefully as I can say it because that to me is the biggest disease on the planet for all of us. I mean, I've been to a lot of Final Fours. I'm about as complacent as nobody. I don't feel good about anything right now except the chance to get to another one. And I think that's the way the players feel. We did not play great last weekend and they know that. But we did what you gotta do and that's find a way to win and grind it out and maybe be more physical and maybe be a little better defensively. But I think our shooting will come back; and if it does, then chances go up for us. Q. For those of us like you who have known Denzel since he was a child, other than off the court, he really hasn't changed; he's humble; he's just the same kid that he always was. Today President Obama called him the best player in the country. And it just does not faze him. How much does his being so surreal off the court benefit him as a leader? TOM IZZO: Don't kid yourself that it doesn't faze him. I mean, President Obama picked us to win a couple of years ago and I still feel I let him down. So it fazes us. He's a humble kid. He's well-raised. His father is tougher on him than I am. But again it's another one of those things we've preached in our program. And I think if Draymond saw him get a little bit big headed, he's whacking him. Magic called him the other day, he's getting him. It's the cool thing about what we have. That's why I said at the beginning of the questions, the culture is good right now and the culture has been built and it's been a 20-year build. And so he is one of the consummate examples of what happens when you come through and keep your humility and keep your work ethic and understand that treat people right. Denzel's done an incredible job. I don't know what's going to happen the night he's done. That's going to be a hard night for me, because he's done everything I could ask him. THE MODERATOR: Thank you, Coach. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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