Michigan State University Athletics
From The Press Room on NCAA Tournament Selection Sunday
3/11/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 11, 2001
EAST LANSING, Mich. -
MSU head coach Tom Izzo
"Well, we're excited to say the least. I didn't know where we would end up, but I think having three-straight No. 1 seeds is something that our program can be proud of. As I said earlier it didn't matter if you were a one or a two and looking at all four regions and the top four teams in each region, I think I was right. I don't really think it matters where you are, there is going to be a lot of tough games you are going to have to play to win. I looked at some of the No. 10 and 11 seeds and to be honest with you I just couldn't believe it. Times are changing in college basketball, and yet we're excited to be a No. 1 seed."
"Going to the south is fine with me. I can't say I didn't hope we would go to Dayton just for Andre's sake - but other than that, Memphis looks good to me. I wish I knew a little bit more about Alabama State right now. I do know a little bit more if we get by that game California beat UCLA by 30 points and should have beat Arizona the other night, and Fresno's pretty good so we don't know a lot about any of the other teams yet, but it does look like we'll have our work cut out just to get out of Memphis, much less to move on from there."
"Our guys are really excited. I think that there has been a lot of pressure on this team all year and it was good to know that the Big Ten Tournament didn't harm anybody even though there has been a lot of strange upsets. I think it would have harmed some people with an early loss if some of the other teams didn't get beat. But I think the year finished exactly like I said throughout the year, and that's I am not sure there are any upsets anymore. There is just so much parity that anyone can beat anyone."
MSU Senior Forward Andre Hutson
"I think the guys were pretty excited. We didn't know where we were going to end up, but once we saw our No. 1 seed, the guys were pretty ecstatic."
On not playing in Dayton:
"It's all right. We still have a No. 1 seed and I'm just happy to be out there and get another chance to play in the tournament. The Midwest looks pretty tough and I'm pretty glad that it (the South) isn't to far from my family. I feel our fans can still travel and support us just as much as if we were in the Midwest."
Process getting ready for an opponent the team hasn't seen before: "It's just like a non-conference game for us. We just have to get a hold of some film and try to learn as much as possible. It's going to be tough and it's like that for every team in the tournament. You're playing new teams and some unfamiliar faces so we definitely have to buckle down and pick up our intensity."
MSU Senior Guard Charlie Bell
About Alabama State:
"We do not know too much right now. They (Alabama State) are not a team you see on ESPN a lot so we are definitely going to have our work cut out as far as watching film.
On California or Fresno State:
"They're two tough teams out in the west. Fresno State with the "Tark" as their coach, he's been there before and he's led teams to championships so he knows what its like to come out there and do first things first. We have to go out and take care of Alabama State.
Change in attitude coming off the loss: "We know that one bad game could be the end of the season. With all of the seniors we've got on this team, coming off of a loss like that, I mean we definitely didn't plan on losing early like that in the Big Ten Tournament, and we definitely don't plan on losing in the NCAA Tournament.
"We don't like to get losses out of our system. We hope there aren't too many losses in our system. We just want to go out there and play. I think we didn't play well against Penn State, but we had to give them a lot of credit. I think that it's great to see seven teams from the Big Ten in the tournament."
