Post-Game Quotes: Western Michigan

Michigan State Head Coach Tom Izzo

Opening Statement...
First and foremost, I wanted to thank the fans, but I screwed up in all this stuff because I want to thank our veterans you know it's the week. Some of you have good friends, some of you have fathers, some of you have brothers that are in the military. I thought it was an incredible deal that they have had in the NFL, definitely college football and us trying to bring light to the guys and gals that make it so that we can play these games. After going over there twice as a civilian and realizing what they do and how tough it is, I just want to say thank you to each and every one of them. Hopefully as I told my players before the game, you're playing for yourself, your team, your university, but tonight you get to wear something, you're playing for your veterans. You won't understand it because you don't when you're 17, 18, 19 but some day you will so I just want to give that shout out.

It was a weird game. I think they hit four threes in the first five or six minutes, I think we had four turnovers in the first five or six minutes. Then we really cranked it up defensively, we got our running game going. You can see were still not smooth yet, I think some of it is those point guards figuring it out, Tyson figuring out where he's at yet. Getting the ball moved around, we didn't shoot the ball very well from the three, but I thought we had some great looks. They'll fall. I mean Max Christie's, one of the best shooters that I have ever had here. Ironically the job he did defensively tonight really impressed me. He's still got six rebounds but still didn't hit the shots that he hits every day in practice. Joey missed one or two, Gabe missed two or three, those are our best shooters. For Gabe to get to the line seven times start to realize about what were harping on about getting to the free throw line matters. To have the rebounding edge that we had, I say this I like their team. I know it hurt when B. Artis went out but they have some tough kids inside. But its hard to evaluate sometimes and that's why it was good that we played Kansas and really critique that film and tried to improve on the things that we did not do that good of a job on. One of them is putting Marcus on that block. I thought that was better, he probably could have played more minutes but we were winning we weren't going to do that. I thought Joey getting the double-double was big he had nine rebounds at half time. We just had a lot of guys that did some good things, AJ continuing to play good and still make some little better decisions.

Concerned about the vertically rule, I think there's a lot of injuries. They jump up, come down but you have to land in the same spot. I mean both ways so its not anything about Michigan State, but those guys are going in there and there's a lot of contact in there. This thing about jump up, put your hands up and it means you're legal, I struggle with that a little bit. It wasn't the way it was called tonight or last Tuesday, every game I watch I think that were exploiting that rule a little bit, so I'm concerned about that.

Malik did some good things, was better defensively. Julius, I thought looked a little tired today. I was happy Jaden Akins looked like the athlete, the rebounder the Charlie Bell type guy that I think he can become, it was better tonight.

As the tempo increases the turnovers increased...
Those turnovers at the beginning, I mean were going to be running in practice and guys will be coming out. So write it already, I'm taking away their game or they're going to take care of the ball, period. You give people a life line until they abuse it and some of those turnovers were not going to settle for. What that means I don't know but we did a much better job when we got running. I thought our half court was bad. We thought we scored in the half court pretty good a lot of high low stuff. We rolled up Joey a couple times, we got into Marcus. But we have a lot of work to do yet were still not in sync, why would you be? Those perimeter guys are almost all new in different ways and they haven't played together so it's going to take a little while.

On can the team make rebounds a major plus…
I think it can. A little different, you know, Marky (Marcus Bingham Jr.) has to get more aggressive. I think we have to get more out of Malik. He's a guy that could be one of those great rebounders with quickness. Joey is just solid as a rock right now. I mean he is playing awfully well. He made a couple of great passes. He made one, where he drove the middle and passed it back to Malik and God, we missed a wide open three, but we've been shooting the ball good. I told you we've been shooting the ball good from the free throw line. It's going to come together, so I think rebounding could be a strength for this team. I'm not ready to say that yet. I looked at that team, I look at the film, I talk to my staff, and we were concerned coming off the Kansas loss and some of it was B. Artis (White) and some of it was, I think I got to give some credit to how the defense played. I didn't think we had a lot of open looks.

On being consistent in the interior…
If I can keep Marky on this side of the force field. Any of you watch Lost in Space, you older guys, you younger guys never saw it, but there's one of those force fields and the three-point line, if he can stay inside of it, not that he can't shoot, but he can do so many more things like get fouled, get a rebound because he is in position. He's got a beautiful jump hook. I'm excited. I think Marcus was excited about what he did. It's hard to excite Marcus, and yet I think there were a few meetings after that loss because of how we played, and he responded really well. He turned that one over going to the left, but we asked him to take it to the rack instead of all the fall-a-ways and he did that, that's the only turnover that I didn't mind.

On Jaden and Max crashing the boards…
I'll tell you, when I recruited Max Christie I said, "You are going to be one of the best shooters and ball handlers for that position." Runners. He does all those things. I thought he'd be an average defender and a below average rebounder and right now he has impressed me more because I don't even think twice about his shooting. He's that good of a shooter, but he does those other things like he did tonight, and he really did a pretty good job against Kansas too, to be honest. There were a couple times, I mean he's trying to figure out how to play against switch with these point guards, it's a different speed but I've been really pleased with Max. Jaden (Akins) who struggled a little bit against Kansas didn't really tonight we told him to go to the offensive board, run the lane, guard somebody. He took a couple of shots against Kansas that were a question mark, and today I thought he made some great athletic plays. I mean the kid is an athlete, he needs to get stronger but he too works his tail off, really bright kid academically and he's going to be a damn good player sooner or later.

Redshirt Senior forward Joey Hauser

On the difference on tonight's performance…
The first game I felt relaxed and free flowing. I think that is the different between this year and last year. Obviously, last year with COVID-19, circumstances were different, but I just have a different feel. I feel more comfortable out there. Last year, I felt like a freshman all over again. So this year is just a very different feeling.

On if there is a feeling to show they are a Top-25 team…
We haven't talked about it much. Obviously, we know that we aren't ranked, and we played the number three team in the country a couple nights ago. We made it a game, obviously at the end we let it slip away a little bit. We are good enough to be up there, and we are just going to take it game-by-game. And if we get ranked, we don't really care; we are just going to take it game-by-game.

On fixing the turnover problems vs. Kansas…
Turnovers and missed free throws were the name of the game the other night. That was something we needed to clean up and continue to work at. We are a team that likes to get out and run, so there is a chance of turnovers. We just have to sharpen up. When we don't turn the ball over, we get more shots, so that is something that Coach is always talking about. Made free throws is something we have to do in college basketball…you've got to make free throws.

On the difference between Walker and Hoggard…
They are both really good in their own respective games. AJ has been here for a year, so maybe he feels more comfortable pushing the ball, but honestly they are interchangeable. What one guy lacks, the other guy might do better. It is really good to have two points guard that can really push the ball and get guys shots and can score themselves. Either one of them at any time…you've got to go with the one with the hot hand. They can even play together too. They both do a good job of pushing the ball.

Senior forward Gabe Brown

On having a strong rebounding game…
That is what Coach harped on me about this entire summer about me crashing the glass, because I haven't been doing a great job of that. I just focus on that each and every game, just go at it every time. Me and our GA work on rebounding and stuff like that, getting the ball and going back up with it. I work on it constantly each and every day in my workouts.

On tonight's defensive effort…
Coach harped on us about last game, not checking very well. So we wanted to come out and check like it is supposed to be done. We did that.

On this team reaching its potential…
This team has a very good chance at being special, especially much better than last year. We've got new point guards, and new guys that take a new approach to everything, so I feel like we have a great chance to go far with this.

Sophomore Guard A.J. Hoggard

On transitions…

Our first initial is to always get the ball ahead, just advancing the ball, getting down the court, so our wings can attack. A lot of people get our scouting reports and take away our wings, so today I was having to be aggressive and putting pressure on the defense, make them help and try to get my shooters shots today.

On building off the last game and staying positive early on…

It keeps me motivated. There were things we did in that game that we know we couldn't have done, just coming in focused on things today. Things to clean up and just play. Just me being aggressive, being aggressive downhill so I can make plays for myself and my teammates, like I said. So that's just my focus, coming and making plays, however I had to make them.

On knowing teammates and their tendencies...spending time with teammates...

It comes with time, it comes with team comradery. Just knowing your guys, knowing your personnel. Knowing where Gabe [Brown] likes the ball, knowing where Max [Christie] likes the ball. Knowing where Joey [Hauser] wants to catch it, knowing where Malik [Hall] wants to catch it, knowing where Marcus [Bingham Jr.] wants to catch it. It's just knowing your guys, knowing your personnel, studying those guys, watching film, and just being aggressive. Studying the game and reading the game on the floor.

It comes with playing and practicing, and just talking and having conversation off the court. We're around each other a lot, we do a lot of things together as a team. Game night, movie night, things like that. So we're just always around each other and we have those conversations: "I missed you on this," "You missed me on this," … guys tell me that so it helps me know where they want the ball, the spots they like to catch it, so I take that and move forward with it.

Junior Guard Tyson Walker

On getting accustomed to taking on bigger opponents in competition, like at Kansas…
I think [at Kansas] I was a little too excited, and trying not to mess up, and that made me mess up. With the speed, the size … I mean we're practicing against each other every day and we're just as big, or bigger, than they are.

What kind of emotions were experienced at MSG against Kansas…
I was excited, just like, to play at The Garden. Because that's like, every kid wants to do that, play from New York. But it was fun. It was fun. We were a little too excited, it was alright.

On finding his way through the nonconference games…
Yeah, my problem was, I think I'm a really good finisher. I like to get to the basket, and you can't do that as much now because of the [opponent's] size, so I had to try and stay off the ground because they're bigger. There's not really much to it other than just taking shots.

On his relationship with Coach Izzo…
Our relationship has come a long way in a short couple months. And I have so much respect for that guy. Because he'll do anything for you. So like now, I think [we're] kind of understanding each other. And it's good.

On the chemistry between him and AJ Hoggard…
It's a good relationship. We're both from the East Coast. We got like, an understanding, we can literally tell when someone's upset. When something's going on. It's really good to good balance, to have everybody from the Midwest and then just us from the East Coast.

Players Mentioned

Jaden Akins

Marcus Bingham Jr.

Gabe Brown

Max Christie

Joey Hauser

A.J. Hoggard

Tyson Walker

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