HOUSTON - Memphis wins it 92-74 and will meet Texas on Sunday at 1:20 local time.
Rose finishes with 27 for Memphis, CDR has 25. Suton with 23 and Allen with 20 for State.
We'll be back with you from interview day, tomorrow (Saturday) in the early afternoon.
HOUSTON - Despite missing much of the second half with an eye injury, Derrick Rose leads all scorers with 25 points and Memphis is up 83-66 with 1:56 left.
We're being assured by the NCAA that this game will actually end at some point.
. . . Tip for Sunday's South region championship game was just announced as 1:20 CT (2:20 ET). That's slightly odd because we thought with Billy Packer and Jim Nantz at this site, they would have had the natural lead-in to "60 Minutes" and be able to set the complete Final Four field. Instead, it will be Cinderella Davidson and Kansas that get the fill the final spot.
. . . Neitzle hit his first field goal of the game with 1:45 left. He is 1 of 7 from the field., with all but one attempt a 3-pointer.
HOUSTON - If this game were a candy, it'd be a Gobstopper.
Michigan State has, much to Tom Izzo's credit, been able to extend this one and wring out every last second. With 3:58 left in the game, Memphis leads 78-62 and the parade to the free-throw line is going to continue.
Neitzel has still not scored for State.
. . . There's no way you can blame Memphis for its second half lapse. It's too hard to keep up the kind of intensity they brought in the first half and with a 30 point lead at halftime, there's a certain expectation that the game is over, even though 20 minutes still needed to be ticked away.
That said, Calipari will gladly use the second half as further motivation for his Tigers as he tries to convince them that the world is against them on Sunday. And few do such motivtaional games better than the Tiger mentor.
HOUSTON - With 6 minutes left, it appears that Tom Izzo will foul on every Memphis possession.
Calipari has said he will have his players try and run away and hide, but so far the technique has led to two trips to the line for Rose and Kemp. Rose missed one, Kemp made two.
HOUSTON - It's not a game, but State has done it's best to make it one after Memphis dozed off for the past ten minutes of game time.
Memphis leads 69-48with 7:39 left in the game.
. . . Drew Neitzel still has not scored in the game. He is 0 of 5 from the field and 0 of 4 from 3-point land.
. . . Rose returned for Memphis with 8:45 left in the game. He is sporting a bandage over his right eye. He score four straight points. Guess they missed him a bit.
HOUSTON - Memphis is having a hard time creating a flow in this latter portion of the game, understandably so. But Calipari is not happy despite a 61-39 lead with 11:55 left in the game.
Derrick Rose is nowhere to be found and has definitely left the bench area.
. . . Text Message of the night, received at 10:23 CT with Memphis up 61-36, from a weisenheimer friend of Posting Up (FOPU): "Geez, I hope Memphis's free throw shooting doesn't hurt them down the strecth of this one."
Why can't I come up with gold like that?
. . .Memphis Media Moron is now eating my media room-procured Snickers and M&Ms. The chewing seems to keep him quiet, which is nice. Wish they had Laffy Taffy.
. . . Every game tonight has the potential to be double-digit blow-outs. Not exactly what the mothership of CBS was looking for to boost sagging ratings.
HOUSTON - Michigan State could not get anything going in the first half and the stats don't lie in this one:
Memphis won the board battle, 22-6.
Memphis shot 20 of 32 from the field (63 percent).
State shot 9 of 23 (39 percent).
Memphis hit 4 of 10 from 3-point land.
State hit 1 of 6 from beyond the arc.
Suton led State with 11 points.
Rose led Memphis with 12 and four assists (Neitzel led State with four assists).
Just four State players scored (two with 2 points each).
Eight Tigers scored.
Memphis had 3 turnovers.
State had 9.
Memphis had 6steals.
State had 1.
Memphis scored 24 points in the paint to 12 for State.
Memphis netted 16 points off turnovers to 2 for State.
Memphis has 13 second-chance points (10 offensive boards), State has zero.
. . . Tough night for the Big Ten with Wisconsin falling to team from a mid-major conference and State looking at a 30-point deficit to a team from a Mid.
. . . State's last field goal of the half came with 6:17 left in half.
MEMPHIS - Memphis beat writers are already finished with their game stories. Columnists will have no trouble meeting deadline. This one is a joke. Memphis leads 50-20 at half, a score that was punctuated by a breakaway, between the knees dunk by Derrick Rose.
Michigan State may be boarding the bus right now for all we know.
. . .Big fella Pierre Niles checked in for Memphis with a little over two minute sleft in the half and proceeded to take an alley-oop and lay it in for two. if this thing goes this way and Memphis meets texas, we're proposing a sumo match at halftime on Sunday between Niles and Texas's Dexter Pittman.
. . . Back with stats when they get to us.
HOUSTON - Playing their best half of basketball in the NCAA Tournament, Memphis has taken a commanding 41-20 lead with 3:46 left in the half.
Drew Neitzel looks especially frsutrated and has yet to score for the Spartans. Memphis is lead by CDR's eight points.
. . . Incredibly, Memphis is shooting 67 percent (16 of 24) and State is shooting 9 of 19 (47 percent). But the difference has been on the boards, where Memphis has 14 rebounds to just 4 for State.
. . . A Joey Dorsey steal and tomahawak slam with 5:41 left in the half put Memphis up 37-20. It also started chants of "Joey, Joey, Joey" from the Tiger faithful.
. . . Raymar Morgan picked up his second foul with 7:05 left in the half.
HOUSTON - Memphis has built up a 13 point lead with 7:32 left in the half and now lead 31-18.
Goran Suton has half of State's points with nine, while Memphis has seven players with at least two points, led by Dozier and Rose with seven each.
. . . Willie Kemp with two early 3-pointers for Memphis. The Tigers are 4 of 7 from beyond the arc.
. . . The Tigers have so many student managers that five of them have been relegated to auxiliary seating in the abandoned Stanford band section.
. . . The Memphis mascot is in its Elvis costume, a personal favorite of ours.
. . . With Anderson out, Rose picked up Neitzel on defense for Memphis.
. . . The video board that had been distracting Memphis players during yesterday's shoot around gets turned off during free throws.
. . . Robert Dozier picked up his second foul with 7:32 left in the half.
HOUSTON - The Tigers lead 19-13 with 11:42 left in the half. Both teams are shooting well with Memphis at 7 of 10 and State at 6 of 12. Memphis holds a slight 5-2 rebounding edge. Rose has 7 points to lead Memphis and Chris Allen has 5 to pace the Spartans.
. . . State is in a 2-3 zone to start.
. . . A trey by Rose gave Memphis a 10 point lead right around the 15-minute mark. Biggest of the game.
. . . Idong Ibok picked up his second foul with 13:58 left in the half.
. . . Texas players have just entered the arenadium and are sitting down to scout their next opponent. Big cheers all around.
HOUSTON - Memphis leads 11-6 with 15:36 left in the half. Michigan State has already committed four fouls to zero for the Tigers. Four different Tigers have scored in the first 4-plus minutes, led by freshman Derrick Rose.
. . . Antonio Anderson starts out defending Drew Neitzel as expected. Anderson hit his first 3-point attempt. Neitzel missed his.
. . . John Calipari is utilizing the stool provided by the NCAA. Tom Izzo is too. Neither coach in the first game was a stool sitter.
. . .Joey Dorsey became the first player to run off the side of the stage/court when he saved a ball from going out of bounds. It led to a breakaway from Chris Douglas-Roberts, who travelled as he made his lay-up.
. . . The building has lost some energy for sure after the first game despite the fact that most of the burnt-orange rooters have remained.
HOUSTON - On our way back to the media room, we passed by Tom Izzo's good friend, Steve Mariucci, the ex-NFL head coach of the San Franccisco 49ers and Detroit Lions. Nice support for his pal.
. . . The officials for the second game will be Karl Hess, Bert Smith, Tom O'Neill.
. . . Probable starters look like this:
Michigan State
Kalin Lucas
Drew Neitzel
Goran Suton
Raymar Morgan
Drew Naymick
Memphis
Antonio Anderson
Chris Douglas-Roberts
Derrick Rose
Robert Dozier
Jey Dorsey
. . . Slightly more blue in the crowd than green, but we're guessing all those burnt orange fans are going to be Green Teamers.
. . . Okay, we'll give you a prediction in this one - close throughout and Memphis wins by five or less.
HOUSTON - Welcome to Reliant Stadium for the South Regional games, being hosted by Rice University and the Univeristy of Houston. This is one mammoth stadium and it sits next to the building that used to be called the Eighth Wonder of the World, the Houston Astrodome. Reliant, by that logic, is the Ninth Wonder.
The set-up for this regional is a first-time experiment by the NCAA (also being used at Ford Field in Detroit, where Jerry Palm will describe the action for Posting Up and CSTV.com). The court is elevated and placed in the middle of the football field with seating brought down close to the court. The endzones have been draped off with black curtains, but the rest of the seating under the retractable roof (which is closed, wiseguy) is available for fans and tickets still remain for the three games on Friday and Sunday.
Interviews start shortly with Stanford going at 1 p.m. CT, followed by Texas, Michigan State and Memphis. Stanford has just finished its open practice in front of a small crowd and they are being followed by Michigan State, Texas and Memphis (3:10-4 p.m.)
We'll try and liveblog the latter two open practices after we work some of the interviews.
. . . In the official regional media guide, there is a reference to Memphis as "Memphis State University," a moniker they have not used in some time. Very old school.
Continue reading "Houston: Interviews and Open Practice Day" »
Welcome to the South Regional, an experiment in both seating and seeding.
Reliant Stadium (in addition to Ford Field) will be guinea pig sites in the NCAA's latest plan to get more fannies into the game. That seating issue - no matter how the experiment in "Hoops in the Round" goes over - is quite secondary to the seeding issue.
No. 1-seed Memphis is suddenly the least liked 1-seed in the history of 1-seeds - taking slings and arrows from all sides. No. 2-seed Texas finds itself with a decided homecourt advantage. Even if Texas coach Rick Barnes doesn't it see that way.
"The bottom line is that in the two games we played in San Antonio (en route to the 2003 Final Four), we had to fight for our lives," said Barnes of his team's wins over UConn and Michigan State. "At this point and time in the season, (playing in Houston) is probably going to be made a bigger deal that it really is."
Still, there is evidence that Everything's Bigger and Better in Texas for the Longhorns. They are 9-4 in NCAA Tournament play in the state of Texas and are undefeated in such games under Barnes(6-0, twice in Dallas and once in S.A.). In fact, Barnes is .500 (9-9) in NCAA games outside the friendly borders, as the Texas head man.
In other Houston seeding intrigue the site also gives us the slightly under-seeded duo of Michigan State (5) and Stanford (3). The Spartans are more of a "4" and Stanford feels like a "2.5." Both - at the very least - are playing their best ball at the most opportune time and quite deserving of playing on the next-to-the-last weekend of the season.
After the jump, some South Regional tidbits that will help you pass the time between now and Friday night's tip from the Texans' home.
Be sure to join us for live-blogging from Media Day on Thursday afternoon from Houston (as well some open practice live-blogging) here at Posting Up.
Continue reading "South Regional: The Day Before the Day Before Preview" »
DENVER, Colo. - It took six games, but we finally got a competitive one. Michigan St beat Pitt 65-54 to move on to the South Regional in Texas where they will face the winner of Memphis and Mississippi St.
Neitzel led the Spartans with 21 points and hit 5 of 8 from three point range. Kalin Lucas also had a great game with 19.
Pitt got 19 from Levance Fields, who shot 6-12 from the floor. The rest of the team was ice cold, shooting a combined 11-42. Sam Young did mange to squeeze out 15 points though.
So much for me being Pitt's lucky charm. I hadn't seen them in person all year before the Big East tournament, but they had won five straight in my presence.
Meanwhile, our attention turns to UCLA and Texas A&M. UCLA came back to win, much to the head-shaking relief of Dan Guerrero. I caught up with him after the game and asked if he got to see much of the game here. He told me he watched each game with one eye. He also wasn't surprised to see UCLA come back to win. They have done a lot of that kind of thing this year.
Also, our attention turns to the regionals in Detroit, where I will be next week. But first, tomorrow I'll have my bests and worsts of Denver.
DENVER, Colo. - Drew Neitzel has scored the last eight Michigan St points and the Spartans are now up 55-50 with 3:38 to go.
Dixon got into it with the referees when two of them called fouls on different guys when two ran into each other. After a conference, the call went against Pitt and Dixon, not surprisingly, got hot.
DENVER, Colo. - The Spartans have pulled back ahead by three at the 8-minute timeout.
On press row, the attention is on the UCLA game. No place does that seem to be more true than across the way from us, where UCLA AD and committee member Dan Guerrero seems engrossed in something on a monitor in front of him. I'm guessing he's not watching Dancing with the Stars.
A couple of minutes ago, Neitzel tried to take credit (is that the right word) a foul that was on Morgan. The ref blew the whistle, and Neitzel's hand went up in the air immeidately, yelling after the ref, "that's on me!" It wasn't.
DENVER, Colo. - Pitt has gone on a 10-2 run to cut the Spartans lead to two at 42-40. Levance Fields had four points during the run.
Despite the run, Pitt fans are sitting on their hands, while Michigan State's fans behind us are up and active. They should have plenty of energy since they didn't use any up on Thursday.
We have Texas A&M-UCLA on the monitor next to us as pretty much everyone hopes for their brackets' sake that UCLA makes a comeback.
DENVER, Colo. - Jamie Dixon's timeout after Michigan St scored the first four points didn't work. The Panthers turned the ball over again, and the Spartan run got to 8-0 before Blair pounded home a couple of layups.
Goran Suton has a couple of baskets for Michigan St inside. He's been very effective today, but he's out of the game right now.
DENVER, Colo. - Michigan St has scored the first four points of the second half. The first few possessions were empty for each team, but Suton cleaned up some garbage and Morgan went baseline for a dunk to put the Spartans up six.
Here's a picture of Neitzel and Lucas making a plan right before inbounding the ball to start the half. Whatever it was, it didn't work.
DENVER, Colo. - MSU sent six players onto the floor coming out of a time out right before the break, then promptly threw the ball away for a game-tying layup by Fields. However, Kalin Lucas went coast to coast right after that to give the Spartans a 30-28 lead at the half.
Pitt has hung in there in spite of pretty miserable shooting. They are 9-31 from the floor for 29%. The Spartans are shooting 50% even. Pitt still has an 8-point lead at the free throw line though.
Lucas has 10 points to lead MSU, while Fields' 11 leads the Panthers.
Our halftime entertainment was the Michigan St band. MSU has a dance team, but they didn't perform. Pitt had a dance team on Thursday, but they haven't been seen tonight.
For a while, I didn't think I'd make it back for the second half. I had to wait quite a long time to wash my hands in our small bathroom as the sinks were occupied by one guy scrubbing for surgery and another guy fixing his makeup. Someone fixing their face is something you don't see much in a men's room. He said he was a TV guy. Yeah, right.
DENVER, Colo. - Neitzel just hit his third three-ball of the half to put Michigan St five and Jamie Dixon has called timeout.
Goran Suton also has six points for MSU.
Ronald Ramon is still having trouble finding the hole, as are his teammates. They are only 5-19 from the floor, but have hit eight free throws.
DENVER, Colo. - I think you can tell that the PA guy may not watch a lot of college hoops. He just mispronounced Drew Neitzel's name as "NEET-zel" instead of "NEYET-zel'
Raymar Morgan already has two foul for Michigan St, and Pitt already has six points at the line.
Young got a break away dunk, and was still whooping it up when he got back down the floor to play defense.
Michigan St is ahead though 13-12 with 10:20 left in the half. The Spartans have two shot clock buzzer-beating baskets.
It looks like the Michigan St coaching staff got together and decided on pastel ties. Izzo is sporting a light blue, while two of his assistants opted for lavender.
DENVER, Colo. - It's taken a lot of shots, but both teams are finally on the board here. MSU leads 4-2 at the first TV timeout. Neitzel and Morgan have tried and failed from the floor for MSU, and Ramon is 0-3 for Pitt.
At least it's not a blowout. Yet.
DENVER, Colo. - We have the lineups for the Michigan St-Pitt game.
The Spartans start
G Drew Neitzel , Kalin Lucas
F Raymar Morgan, Goran Suton
C Drew Naymick
Pitt counters with
G Levance Fields, Ronald Ramon
F Keith Benjamin, Sam Young
C DeJuan Blair
On Thursday, Ramon was listed as a forward in the lineup, and Benjamin was a guard.
Our refs are Dick Cartmell, Scott Thornley and Michael Eades.
Meanwhile, we're all transfixed on the Stanford-Marquette game, which is in OT. We never did get the CBS feed, but the local affiliate switched to it. They also inform us that a local highway is closed due to heavy smoke from a haystack fire. We don't even have that in Indiana.
DENVER, Colo. - Today has been a day of rest at the Pepsi Center in Denver. Well, not for the teams. They had closed practices and press conferences.
At other sites today, we've had riveting basketball. We had exactly the opposite of that here on Thursday, and we're hoping for better tomorrow.
Our first game, which starts at 4:40 Mountain time, features #4 seed Pittsburgh and #5 seed Michigan St. There are a lot of similarities between these teams. Both are pretty physical teams, rebound well, and get good play from their guards.
Pitt happens to be on fire at the moment. The Panthers won the Big East tournament, then stomped Oral Roberts on Thursday.
Michigan St has generally not played well away from home this year, but you wouldn't know that judging from the pounding they gave Temple.
Both teams play essentially three guards, although Michigan State's Raymar Morgan is a little big for a guard. That is the matchup that will likely be key for Michgan St. They need production from the guards, but Morgan in partcular.
Drew Neitzel did not have a particularly good game against Temple, but he wasn't needed. He will be be tomorrow.
Levance Fields of Pitt had a huge game against ORU with 23 points. It's probably not reasonable to expect that again, but if the team has the balance that they had the other night, with five players in double figures, that will be the omen of a good night.
The matchup that might be the toughest for MSU is Sam Young. Young had a quiet 14 against the Eagles, but his size and ability to play inside and out could cause problems for the Spartans.
Say what you want about MSU, they will be prepared. They toughened themselves up by, "beating ourselves up with game film," according to coach Tom Izzo. That has to hurt.
I like the hot Panthers in this game.
Game two will have another Big East team, Notre Dame taking on Washington St from the Pac 10.
WSU shut Winthrop down completely in the second half of their game on Thursday, which is befitting their top 5 ranking in scoring defense.
Notre Dame will provide some challenges. It will be up to Aron Baynes to try to contain Luke Harangody, while Derrick Low and company on the perimeter try to slow down Kyle McAlarney.
Notre Dame averages about 80 points a game, but WSU gives up less than 55 and only gave up 80 once all year.
On the other end, Low needs to find a way to get his offense going before the halftime break. He was 0-5 against Winthrop in the first half, but 4-5 in the second.
Good offense vs good defense. I'll take good defense and the Cougars.
Tonight, I am watching games from the Blake St Tavern, just north of Coors Field in Denver.
There have been a lot of competing interests here today. I've seen shirts from Purdue, Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio St, Kansas, UCLA, Georgetown, Oklahoma and Oregon, Everybody has a dog in the fight. Except Ohio St.
DENVER, Colo. - Heeding the words of their coach, MSU finished the job, winning 72-61. Press row must be on fire as everyone is trying to get out and watch the end of Xavier and Georgia.
Temple didn't quit, but just never found an answer for Michigan state's defense. Late in the game, after an over-and-back call on MSU, Inge comes over by us to pass the ball in, claps and says, "we still got life!" They didn't, but you have to like that optimism.
With 44 second to go, Michigan St fan finally get on their feet to salute the Spartans. Or maybe they were just stretching. It was hard to tell.
Izzo is doing the requisite CBS interview, while Drew Naymick is taking care of the folks at Westwood one.
Meanwhile, Pitt and Oral Roberts are warming up for game two. Back with that in a bit.
DENVER, Colo. - Drew Naymick, in an effort to draw a foul, made on of the worst flops of all time. He threw himself onto the floor face first and body surfed about five feet. Then, he had the gall to get up and complain. The refs got a good kick out of that.
I'm getting hungry already and I have another game to go. Fortunately, pretzels are the snack du moment in the press room.
Temple has cut the lead to 10 with 3:21 left on four straight run outs because MSU is just going through the motions on offense (as opposed to running a motion offense). Izzo just called a timeout to have a four-letter word with his charges on finishing the game.
DENVER, Colo. - Michigan St seems to have sucked the will out of Temple as they continue to lead 52-38. The Owls haven't quit, but they keep taking one step forward and two steps back.
Temple is now zone pressing full court, but Michigan St is breaking it with ease.
The teams for the next game have left the arena to go get dressed.
Andy Katz just got up and said, "I'm projecting a winner. I'm going to watch Georgia and Xavier in the press room." We may see a lot of that.
The Temple cheerleader girls are still positive and perky. The guys look like they have been watching the game. Maybe the want to go watch Georgia and Xavier also.
The crowd muttered when the Georgia-Xavier score was announced (now tied at 49). I don't think I've ever seen 18,000 more disinterested people at a basketball game. It's so quiet that I can hear almost everything the refs say, and even the coaches from across the way.
DENVER, Colo. - Michigan St has scored the first seven points of the half to run their lead to 16, and Temple was forced to call timeout.
Dionte Christmas is just trying to do too much. He's forced a shot that was an airball, then forced a pass that turned into points at the other end.
Temple's owl mascot has a strange looking head. It's flat, and I always thought owls had round heads. It has bright yellow eyes and a silver beak. It's like an alien owl.
DENVER, Colo. - Michigan St leads Temple 35-26 at the half. After struggling through most of the first part of the half, MSU finally got hot with about seven minutes to go.
Drew Neitzel has three points, which he picked up on a long ball with 51 seconds left. However, he committed his second foul with 0.8 seconds left, which earned him a lecture from coach Tom Izzo (looking sharp with his electric purple tie).
Temple could build one with the bricks they layed in ths first half. They shot 8-27 for just short of 30%, and few of those 19 misses were close. Christmas and Tyndale both airballed threes and then complained about being fouled. Christmas was right. Not so sure about Tyndale. Those numbers would have been a lot worse, but Ryan Brooks hit three baskets for eight points late, and he leads the Owls with 10. Christmas hasn't scored and Tyndale only has 2.
Nine different players scored for the Spartans, led by six each from Kalin Lucas and Raymar Morgan. MSU backdoored the Owls for layups or dunks three times as Temple lost guys on defense. That play seems to be there whenever MSU wants it.
I don't want to harp on this, but this crowd would fit in well in a library. Even the Spartan fans aren't too geeked up. The place is filling up though.
In the press area, folks are gathered around the TV watching Georgia leading Xavier. The Temple folks were not too happy, with one guy in particular repeating, "they better wake up."
DENVER, Colo. - Temple is now shooting below 25%, which isn't going to get it done if it expects to pull this upset. MSU has used a 13-2 run to go ahead 28-17 with 3:41 left.
Dionte Christmas got hacked on a three-point attempt that wasn't called. However, when the ball sailed out of bounds without hitting anything, the MSU fans didn't even bother with the airball chant. That's how dead this crowd is.
Christmas has both of Temple's fouls and hasn't scored. Tyndale finally got on the board with 5:32 left, and that's the Owls' 2 points in this Spartan run.
DENVER, Colo. - Michigan St leads 17-15 at the 8-minute timeout as the stars for each team continue to struggle. Morgan's four points is all there is. Neitzel, Christmas and Tyndale still have nothing.
Lavoy Allen and Sergio Olmos have stepped up for Temple, with 9 of their 15.
Michigan State's offense is spread out with five guys in the books, besides Morgan.
Temple's offense seems to be happy with a lot of dribbling and not much passing. MSU is getting much better ball movement and better shots, but they aren't falling.
The Owls are doing a good job keeping MSU off the glass though. All things considered, Temple has to be happy with where they are.
DENVER, Colo. - Michigan St has been pretty physical with their defense against Temple, and it seems to be causing problems for Christmas and Tyndale.
The Owls 7-footer, Olmos, has been pretty aggressive and has four points, but he's out for the moment. As soon as he went out, the Spartans got their first put back of the game.
On the floor now for Temple is 5'8" Chris Clark, who looks some of the MSU front line guys right in the navel.
It's been a pretty clean game so far. Only two fouls have been called, both on MSU.
DENVER, Colo. - The stars of the respective teams in this game are not off to a scintillating start. Raymar Morgan posted up for the first basket of the game, but walked in transition, giving away a dunk. Neitzel has missed his first two threes also.
For Temple, Christmas has taken one shot and it was forced. Tyndale hasn't put it up yet, but Temple leads 7-6.
MSU has three unforced turnovers, a trend that must stop.
The arena is maybe half full, and the crowd isn't really into it yet.
DENVER, Colo. - I made my way up to the concourse to see what sort of food choices I have if I get the munchies during the game. One thing I remember from last year is that the quality of the food the media gets is hit and miss, and they won't be slopping us pigs until after the first two games.
There are a lot of choices, but beer isn't one of them. No alcohol is sold at NCAA tournament games, so the mojito stands are also closed.
They have the usual stadium fare; hot dogs, pizza, popcorn, etc. The hot dogs are $4.50 for a little one and $6.75 for a footlong. Pizza is six bucks a slice.
Also, the pop being sold is Pepsi, natch, so while those of us in the media are given Dasani cups (Coke's water brand), the fans are all holding Pepsi cups.
They also have things like fish and chips, BBQ turkey sandwich, and my favorite, sausage on a stick. I think all food should be sold on sticks. Pudding on a stick. Eh, that idea still needs some work.
They also have a cheesesteak stand, but one of the things they sell is chicken cheesesteaks. I think I saw a pack of Temple fans picketing.
Michigan St just took the floor led by a cheerleader carrying a big Spartan flag that was so dirty, it looked like it had been vandalized. You would think a school like MSU could get a new flag once in a while, or at least wash the current one.
Hank Nichols seat has been abducted by a woman who is a friend of the Brands. I warned her that some coach might accost her thinking she was in charge of the officials, but she says she's ready. I think she'd give what for if they tried it.
The National Anthem was performed by the Michigan St pep band, under the direction of John Madden. Instead of cymbal crashes, he just yells, "BOOM!"
DENVER, Colo. - It's 9:30 AM local time, and the sound of the bouncing ball is ringing through the Pepsi Center in Denver, even though many of us are still not fully caffeinated. OK, mostly I'm talking about me.
Michigan St and Temple are warming up for the first game and the crowd is starting to file in. The bands are still setting up, so it's relatively quiet.
I'll be curious to see what kind of crowd we have. There isn't a team here that is anywhere near local. Oral Roberts is the only team that traveled less than 600 miles to get here, and Washington St is the only team for which this site is the closest. Notre Dame obviously has fans everywhere, they tend to show up more for football than hoops.
My seat, in case you are looking for me on TV, is basically right at center court behind Mike Montgomery, the former Stanford coach, who is doing radio for Westwood One. To my left is the CBS crew of Gus Johnson and Len Elmore.
My seat is so good that I'm closer to center court than Andy Katz, who has a seat directly to my right. In fact, press row is a pretty tight squeeze. Andy may have to sit in my lap. Or vice versa. He's bigger than me.
To my left is Hank Nichols, who will be retiring as the National Coordinator of Men's Basketball Officials from the NCAA at the end of this tournament. As a former ref, I'm pretty excited to be sitting by him. Next to him is a seat for Myles Brand, the Grand Poobah of the NCAA (possibly not his real title, but I'm too lazy to look it up).
Meanwhile, I have just been handed the starting lineups for game one.
Michigan St will start Kalin Lucas and Drew Neitzel at guard, forwards Raymar Morgan and Goran Suton, and C Drew Naymick.
For the Owls, they start guards Luis Guzman and Dionte Christmas, forwards Mark Tyndale and Lavoy Allen, and center Sergio Olmos.
Our officials are Mark Whitehead, Ken Ditty and Michael Eades.
Stop me if you've heard this one before -- the internet connection is down at the NCAA tournament site in Denver.
Last year St Louis had significant internet connectivity issues as well.
Then, on top of that, I had trouble connecting back in my hotel room, although you can tell by the fact that this is posted that I got that worked out. Not so sure about the arena.
The Pepsi Center seems like a nice place although its a bit strange to be drinking Coke here. Coke is one of the corporate partners of the NCAA. I wonder if they will give the building another name for the duration of our stay.
Here is a little preview of what we will see here tomorrow.
INDIANAPOLIS - The surprise teams of the Big Ten tournament are set to tip off in a few minutes.
Sixth-seeded Minnesota, which beat Northwestern and Indiana, will face 10th-seeded Illinois, which advanced with victories over Penn State and Purdue.
For both teams, this will be their third game in three days.
Wonder if the Gophers thought they would be wearing white uniforms during this tournament?
INDIANAPOLIS - Wisconsin's Michael Flowers didn't win the Big Ten's Defensive Player of the Year honor but he came up with a big steal against Michigan State.
Flowers' steal and layup broke a 63-all tie and helped the top-seeded Badgers subdue the Spartans 65-63.
Flowers stole a pass intended for Drew Neitzel and scored with 27.2 seconds on the clock. After a timeout, the Spartans couldn't find Neitzel and freshman Kalin Lucas had a layup attempt blocked.
Wisconsin, though, missed both free throws and Neitzel's 3-point attempt bounced off the back of the rim.
The Badgers will face the winner between Illinois and Minnesota in Sunday's championship game.
INDIANAPOLIS - Michigan State just lost its fourth player to fouls.
This time, Raymar Morgan takes a seat after picking up his fifth foul.
Wisconsin's Joe Krabbenhoft hits both free throws bringing the Badgers within 60-59 with 3:02 to play.
INDIANAPOLIS - Remember when I mentioned that foul trouble could haunt Michigan State?
It's happening now. The Spartans have lost three players to fouls in a span of one minute. Drew Naymick, Idong Ibok and Goran Suton have all fouled out and there's a lot of time left.
Wisconsin has just pulled within 55-54 on a 3-pointer by Brian Butch with 4:23 to play.
INDIANAPOLIS - Could a four-point play spark Wisconsin, just like a four-point play ignited Michigan State in the first half?
The Badgers hope so. Jason Bohannon completed the play with a free throw, bringing top-seeded Wisconsin within 53-45 at the 7:52 mark.
INDIANAPOLIS - Since Bo Ryan's technical, the Badgers have gone the other way.
Michigan State opened up a pair of 10-point leads, the last one at 45-35 with 12:38 to play. Drew Neitzel, who has 20 points, is back in the game.
Bad news for Wisconsin: Trevon Hughes left the game with an ankle injury.
MSU is up 45-37 with 11:31 to play.
INDIANAPOLIS - Bo Ryan received a technical.
The Wisconsin coach almost got one in the first half and became angry over an offensive foul call early in the second half.
We're at the first media timeout of the second half with Michigan State ahead 35-29. The Spartans will be shooting two free throws on the other side.
INDIANAPOLIS - In its last three games, Wisconsin never trailed.
Today, the Badgers have only led for 58 seconds against Michigan State in the semifinals at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Behind senior guard Drew Neitzel, the Spartans are ahead 29-27 at halftime. Neitzel has 15 points.
MSU's big men experienced foul trouble in the first 20 minutes but survived with the lead.
Brian Butch has nine points for the top-seeded Badgers.
INDIANAPOLIS - I know I keep writing about Drew Neitzel but this kid is special.
He just faked Wisconsin's Brian Butch out of you know what on a sweet baseline move, giving Michigan State the lead at 27-25. There's 1:19 remaining until halftime and Neitzel has 13 points.
INDIANAPOLIS - Drew Neitzel strikes again for Michigan State.
This time, he converted a four-play from the left wing to give the Spartans a 20-16 lead. The left-handed shooting guard has 11 points as the Spartans now lead 22-18 with 7:46 left until halftime.
MSU, though, is experiencing foul problems. Starting big men Drew Naymick and Goran Suton each have two fouls and reserve Idong Ibok has three fouls
INDIANAPOLIS - On Friday, Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan was whistled for a technical in the first half.
Today, Ryan has already been warned by the officials. He's close to getting another T.
Michigan State is looking sharp right now, leading 15-11 with 11:22 left until halftime.
INDIANAPOLIS - Michigan State's Drew Neitzel is at it again.
The hot shooting senior guard has seven of the Spartans' first nine points with four minutes expired in our first semifinal. Neitzel had 28 points against Ohio State in Friday's quarterfinal victory.
Michigan State is ahead 9-5.
INDIANAPOLIS - Welcome to the Big Ten semifinals at Conseco Fieldhouse.
The first game is top-seeded Wisconsin and No. 4 Michigan State, followed by two surprises, No. 6 Minnesota and No. 10 Illinois.
It will be hard to top what happened Friday night in the evening session when the Gophers won on a last-second shot and the Illini upset No. 2 seed Purdue in overtime.
Much of this town was expecting a Purdue-Indiana semifinal rematch but will watch Minnesota and Illinois instead.
Plenty of good seats available.
INDIANAPOLIS - What else can you say about Drew Neitzel?
Michigan State's senior guard came up big at the right time for the Spartans, who put away Ohio State 67-60 in Friday's quarterfinal action of the Big Ten Conference tournament at Conseco Fieldhouse.
Neitzel's 3-pointer with 1:21 remaining pushed MSU's lead to 61-55. It was the last of his game-high 28 points and advanced the Spartans into Saturday's semifinal matchup against top-seeded Wisconsin.
INDIANAPOLIS - Ohio State had just cut the lead to three when Michigan State's Drew Neitzel canned a long 3-pointer with 1:18 to play.
That was the difference as the Spartans came away with a 67-60 victory over the Buckeyes.
Neitzel finished with 28 points, including six from 3-point range.
Ohio State placed four players in double figures but didn't have an answer for Neitzel.
INDIANAPOLIS - Last Sunday, Michigan State had a 10-point lead at Ohio State but lost 63-54.
Can the Spartans hang on this time?
It's the final media timeout and MSU is leading 54-48. I
INDIANAPOLIS - Just when you think Ohio State is ready to take control, Michigan State comes right back.
The Buckeyes pulled within 47-45 but the Spartans answered with five straight points, including a 3-pointer from Durrell Summers.
It's 52-45 with 6:24 to play.
INDIANAPOLIS - Through the first 10 minutes of the second half, a total of 21 points have been scored between Michigan State and Ohio State.
That doesn't there hasn't been action. Three fouls were called on OSU's Kosta Koufos in about a minute. A technical was called on OSU's Othello Hunter. Lots of boos from the fans, on both sides.
MSU is up 43-40.
INDIANAPOLIS - Michigan State and Ohio State are tied at 30 at halftime, thanks to Jamar Butler's 3-pointer with four seconds on the clock.
Butler now has six points but the offensive star for the Buckeyes is 7-foot freshman Kosta Koufos, who has 13 points. Drew Neitzel is leading the Spartans with 14 points, including three 3-pointers.
So far, it's the best game of the Big Ten tournament.
INDIANAPOLIS - What a block by Michigan State's Travis Walton and then Drew Neitzel drains a long jumper on the other end.
The Spartans lead 27-22 with 3:25 left before halftime.
INDIANAPOLIS - Drew Neitzel and the Spartans have gone cold and Ohio State's 7-foot freshman center Kosta Koufos is heating up.
Koufos has seven points and the Buckeyes have pulled within 20-16 at the eight-minute media timeout. Koufos is shooting two free throws when action resumes.
INDIANAPOLIS - Michigan State's Drew Neitzel could have one of those big games.
The senior guard has eight of the Spartans' 16 points through the first nine minutes. MSU is up 16-11.
INDIANAPOLIS - Fast start for both Ohio State and Michigan State in our second quarterfinal matchup at Conseco Fieldhouse.
The Spartans lead 9-7 and Drew Neitzel has five points, including a long 3-pointer just 30 seconds into the game. MSU fans loved that and there are plenty of people dressed in green.
INDIANAPOLIS - These two teams just played Sunday in Columbus, Ohio, with the Buckeyes winning 63-54.
The Spartans had a season-high 21 turnovers, leading to 28 points for Ohio State.
Michigan State has been a strange team this season. Coach Tom Izzo's team either looks really good or really bad. There's usually no middle ground.
The Buckeyes probably need one more win to feel secure about their NCAA chances.
Look for a fun matchup between MSU's Drew Neitzel and OSU's Jamar Butler.
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- Here are some notes and quotes from Michigan State's big victory over Texas this afternoon at The Palace:
* To say that Texas got nothing from its bench would be overrating it. Five guys played a total of 16:19 (including two seconds from Ian Mooney) and took only one shot, a made three-pointer by J.D. Lewis.
After the game, Longhorns coach Rick Barnes was obviously concerned.
"This week in practice, we didn't even play the first five much," he said. "We practiced the back ups a lot to try to get those guys going, because we know we are going to need more production from them.
"One of the bad things about our schedule right now is that it hasn't given us a lot of chances to play our bench. We haven't had too many games where those guys can play much."
* As I write this, Oakland leads Oregon by three at 15-12.
* Barnes also felt like his guys helped out Michigan State -- a lot. "Michigan State doesn't need a lot of help to beat you three times," he said.
Barnes was talking about defensive lapses and perhaps bad shooting. The Longhorns only had nine turnovers (Michigan State only had six) and out-rebounded the Spartans, 36-31.
* Damion James had a monster game with 15 points and 16 rebounds. Connor Atchley chipped in with 10 rebounds. On the scoreboard, Abrams totaled 24 and Augustin finished with 22. Thirteen of Abrams' points came in the last minute of each half. Augustin also had six assists and no turnovers.
* Obviously, Tom Izzo was pretty pleased with his team's performance. He thought the six turnovers were "probably a low in my 13 years here. We tend to throw the ball around a lot."
* Oakland is now up 25-17. Quick, someone pull the fire alarm!
* I mentioned before that the teams shot roughly the same percentage from long range, but Texas was 11-for-29, while Michigan State was only 3-for-8.
* Kalin Lucas' night was just outstanding on the stat sheet. He also had six assists and only one turnover. Not bad for a freshman. He wasn't the best point guard on the floor, but he wasn't a distant No. 2.
* The press room here was as poorly equipped as press row. There were only 12 chairs, although twice as many would have fit easily. As a result, while Izzo was talking, about 30 of us were jockeying for position against the wall, out of the way.
* After Augustin and Abrams addressed what was left of the media after Izzo had already left the press room, the SID with them told them to "keep drinking." How many college students really need to be told that?
* Oakland is now up 11 with 4:34 left in the half. I think I'll go check a little of that out before heading home.
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- No. 10 Michigan State put on a stifling defensive performance in the second half and defeated No. 5 Texas, 78-72.
Texas scored two quick baskets to start the second half, but only hit three more buckets in the next 14 minutes. Several late baskets, including three A.J. Abrams three-pointers in the final minute, upped the Longhorns shooting for the half to 12-for-33. Texas ended up shooting 39.3 percent for the game.
The only play Michigan State had trouble defending was penetration by D.J. Augustin. The Spartans fouled Augustin seven times (by my count) on his forays into the lane. Izzo really let Travis Walton have it after one of those was his fourth foul. Izzo told him to go ahead and give him the layup rather than take his fourth foul with so much time left (about eight minutes).
Kalin Lucas and Raymar Morgan had 18 each for the Spartans, which shot 49.1 percent from the floor. The shooting difference was nearly all from two-point range though. Michigan State was worse than Texas on threes, shooting 33 percent to the Longhorns' 39.3. Neither team did much from the free throw line, as both shot about 65 percent.
Both teams are now 11-1 on the season. I'll be back in a little bit with some notes and quotes.
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- I knew my battery was bad, but it was worse than I thought. I didn't even make it to tipoff.
MSU came out of the eight-minute timeout, went on an 11-0 run and leads 41-33 at halftime.
Both teams were sloppy at first, but Michigan St finally found their shot and ended up hitting 53.6 percent for the half. Texas never found a rhythm and shot 42.9 percent.
D.J. Augustin went out after getting his second foul early in the Spartans big run, and he was really the only thing working for Texas in the first half. He had nine points and showed a variety of moves on the floor, both to get his own shot and to create for others. Damion James had 10, but shot three of the worst free throws I've seen this year. A.J. Abrams has seven on 3-for-8 shooting. Augustin also shot 3-for-8, but for some reason, Abrams looked worse.
The Spartans got a spark from freshman Kalin Lucas, who came off the bench when Travis Walton got in some quick foul trouble. Lucas leads MSU with 11 points on 5-for-10 shooting.
Halftime Notes:
* Izzo is fun to watch on the bench. He ripped into Marquise Gray on the bench for not going after a loose ball (a mortal sin in Izzo's world), pounded the scorers table when Lucas passed up an open three early in a possession during the big run late in the half (when was the last time you saw a coach complain that a guy didn't shoot quickly enough?) and lament that he team was "givin' 'em points" at the line. That was before Abrams ever got there.
* The guy I thought was Jud Heathcote wasn't. I don't know who he is.
* The crowd has filled in nicely and it's a near sellout.
* The Izzone (student section) boos any time Texas fans are shown on the scoreboard.
* I missed about three minutes of the game when the Michigan State bench stood up in front of me. They have me crammed into an auxiliary press table, which is right up against the stands. For a guy my size (6-foot-1, all leg), it's pretty cramped. The guy next to me (6-foot-8) will need to have his knees surgically removed from his shoulders after the game, though.
* The stat sheet is in. Texas leads by one in rebounds and turnovers.
I see that the half has started. Better get back to my seat. More after the game.
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. -- The good news is that I made it to Auburn Hills for the Spartan Clash, a double header featuring No. 10 Michigan State against No. 5 Texas in the opener. Oregon plays Oakland in the nightcap, but I will not be sticking around for that.
The bad news is that if I had planned my day better, I could have caught No. 8 UCLA at Michigan earlier this afternoon.
The worse news is that my seat here, which is right behind the MSU bench, does not have a place to plug in my computer, so I may only be blogging until the first timeout or until my battery dies.
Tom Izzo, Jud Heathcote and Bill Raftery are chatting in front of me as the teams warm up before the start, which is 15 minutes away. I can't hear them, though.
This game features one of the more pleasant surprises nationally in Texas, which is 11-0 despite losing Kevin Durant from last year's team. D.J. Augustin and A.J. Abrams make up arguably the best backcourt in the country. They combined for 38.5 ppg and Augustin averages 6.4 assists.
Michigan State is led by senior Drew Neitzel and his 14.5 points and five assists, and Raymar Morgan, who averages 16.7 points and 7.4 boards from his small forward position. As always, the Spartans are one of the top rebounding teams in the nation with a plus-11 margin.
Michigan State's only loss this year is to UCLA in the finals of the CBE classic in Kansas City.
The Palace isn't quite, but it is pretty nice. It seems newer than it is. The place holds just over 22,000, but there isn't more than 15 here -- yet anyway. It's pretty much a Michigan State crowd, as you might imagine. The Spartan band, cheerleaders (complete with Santa hats on the girls) and dancers are all here.
That's all for now. Maybe for good.
CINCINNATI, Ohio -- ...except there's 10,000 people watching live and thousands more watching on national TV. But other than that, it's like the good ole days for Tennessee's Ryan Childress and Moeller's Josh Duncan. Those two former high school teammates are battling each other in the post, and each just came up with big baskets against the other.
Childress just scored on and got fouled, which was followed by a technical foul on Xavier coach Sean Miller, who thought Childress should've been called for a charge. Xavier 54-53.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Michigan State boarded its flight back to East Lansing a happy team while BYU boarded its bus back to Provo a solemn bunch.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - BYU may be haunted by its free-throw shooting when this thing is over.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - BYU junior Trent Plaisted was bleeding from his nose during a timeout with 9:17 remaining.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Now we have a game.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - So much for Drew Neitzel's shooting slump.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - BYU has a 35-25 lead over Michigan State at halftime at Energy Solutions Arena.
Continue reading "BYU Leads, But Morgan Presents Problems" »
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - BYU has found its range from the outside and started raining down jump shots on Michigan State.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - BYU has jumped out to an early 5-2 lead over Michigan State on the strength of a Trent Plaisted hook shot and 3-pointer by Lee Cummard.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah - Boston Celtics general manager Danny Ainge is in attendance to watch the BYU-Michigan Stage matchup at Energy Solutions Arena.
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah -- It can't get much better for the first weekend free of college football than a matchup of two ranked 7-1 teams on the hardwood.
That's what fans are going to get here at Energy Solutions Arena this afternoon, when No. 9 Michigan State plays No. 20 BYU.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Now the game is over.
Michigan State walks away with a 81-58 beat down that was never really even that close.
Here are my game awards.
Continue reading "Michigan State-N.C. State Post-game Recap" »
EAST LANSING, Mich. - There's a minute left, and the fans are filing out of the Breslin Center.
All of the starters are now out of the game for Michigan State, and the Spartans have picked up a convincing win at home in ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
Well, I guess it isn't technically over yet...
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Suton just got a little too excited.
After forcing a steal on the defensive end, Suton got the ball on the wing. He rose for the dunk, but forgot to dribble before he took two quick steps to the basket.
Pretty much the only thing Suton's done wrong this game.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Izzo might be the only person in the Breslin Center still taking this game seriously.
He just called a timeout looking disgusted after N.C. State's Dennis Horner hit a wide open three pointer in the corner.
And he added another timeout with just under six minutes left after the Wolfpack just converted on a rare fastbreak after Neitzel went an even rarer 0-for-2 from the line.
It's 71-49, but that's too close for Izzo.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State has to go and put it back out of reach.
Spartan freshman guard Chris Allen just hit a three pointer to stem the short and sweet N.C. State run. The Wolfpack had cut the 28 when Allen hit a three as the shot clock expired to extend the Michigan State lead to 31 with just more than eight minutes left.
Really, it's hard to find interesting aspects of this game at this point. N.C. State may not be as good as its 4-1 record indicates, while Michigan State may be the team to beat in the Big Ten.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Any chance the Wolfpack had at getting some momentum after the break is officially over.
N.C. State is trailing 66-35, which pretty much puts this game out of reach for the visitors from the ACC.
Still, there is 11:43 left on the clock, and Lowe's squad needs to find some cohesiveness while the Spartans tear through them even with Neitzel getting some rest on the bench.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - This is exactly the kind of game the Spartans needed from Drew Neitzel.
The star point guard isn't lighting it up on the scoreboard - he does have 13 points - but he's being the captain of the team.
He's made all of the right passes. He's pushed the ball up court and sliced the N.C. State defense in transition. And when he needs to, he'll show the flashes of the scorer he is, like when he hit a beautiful baseline floater a minute ago.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Sidney Lowe is probably trying to find some kind of positive to motivate his team at the first media timeout of the second half.
He can try this one out if he can't think of any.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Suton is pretty much doing it all for the Spartans.
After he airballed a jumper from the top of the key, he hustled and threw the ball off an N.C. State defender. Michigan State converted on the hustle play with a Neitzel three pointer, and Sidney Lowe had to take a timeout.
The Wolfpack are down 53-26 with 16:04 left in the game. This isn't going to get any better for N.C. State.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- It's been a brutal first half if you're a N.C. State fan.
Sidney Lowe's squad has 19 points at the break, seven of which came in the last four minutes. The Wolfpack trail 41-19 and were simply rattled by the speed of Michigan State and raucious environment in the Breslin Center for most of the first 20 minutes, and they allowed the Spartans to dictate the pace of play.
Michigan State has looked impressive if not dominant with 41 points on the scoreboard and a relentless transition offense.
Both Neitzel and fellow guard Travis Walton have pushed the ball whenever possible, and Suton, among others, has been the recipient of beautiful passes to convert for easy lay-ups.
Right now, Lowe has to convince the Wolfpack that they do need to dribble when they plan on moving with the ball. Turnovers, mainly in the form of traveling, have stymied any kind of flow N.C. State could establish on the offensive end.
For the Spartans, they just need to keep on doing what they're already doing. Keep up the pace and continue to pound the key and the offensive glass.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Spartans are running N.C. State out of the Breslin Center.
Suton has 14 points, the latest four coming off the fastbreak. He's simply trailing the ball and getting the dish for an easy lay-up.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Hey, N.C. State finally broke into double digits.
It only took the Wolfpack 16 minutes to do it. They trail, 31-12, with 4:04 left in the half.
Oh yeah, and N.C. State was called for another traveling violation a few minutes ago. Really, it's not that hard to dribble.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Suton is simply killing N.C. State in the post.
The forward already has 10 points against an undersized Wolfpack team, and Michigan State coach Tom Izzo has kept the ball going into the paint to feed his big man.
N.C. State won't have any chance of making this a game if it can't get defensive rebounds and push Michigan State's forwards out of the key.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Apparently, the Wolfpack forget they have to dribble when they have the ball.
N.C. State has already been called for four traveling violations, and the first half is barely halfway done. Simply unacceptable when you're playing on the road, and Lowe can't be too happy about that statistic.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - I guess it could be worse for N.C. State coach Sidney Lowe.
His team has had no offensive flow. The Wolfpack haven't gotten back on the defensive end in transition. And Michigan State is getting open looks at the basket nearly every time down the court.
But...
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Good news for N.C. State. Suton finally missed after hitting his first three shots.
Bad news is the Wolfpack don't look like they have a clue out there. Maybe they're intimidated by the hostile and loud Breslin crowd, but they've taken a couple of ill-advised deep three-pointers and haven't had any open look at the basket since N.C. State took a 2-0 lead.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- At the first media timeout, Michigan State has started what has the makings of a real blowout.
The Spartans are up, 10-2, and Marquis Gray is on the line, hoping to convert an and-one attempt.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State forward Goran Suton has dominated the early minutes of this game. He's scored the first eight Spartan points of the game to give Michigan State a 8-2 lead just four minutes into the game.
The Spartans are pushing the tempo and getting out in transition, where Suton has been the recipient of several nice dishes by Neitzel and Travis Walton.
N.C. State coach Sidney Lowe was forced to call a timeout to calm his team down and get them to get back on the defensive end.
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Well, it's about two minutes to tipoff, and the Breslin Center here at Michigan State is already getting pretty loud.
The crowd is filing in hoping the Spartans can put another 'w' on the board for the Big Ten this year.
Michigan State will need its floor general Drew Neitzel to have a good game and manage the flow of the ocntest in order to take care of a feisty N.C. State team.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Luc Mbah a Moute hit a three from the corner with 28.6 seconds left to give UCLA the lead.
Drew Neitzel missed his three-point attempt with 11 seconds left and now Michigan State is reduced to fouling.
The Bruins who looked unimpressive for most of the game got hot at the right time and showed they had the toughness to gut out the victory.
UCLA is up, 68-65, and is looking to hold on to that score for the victory. Michigan State didn't play a bad game or make mistakes. UCLA just finally got their shots to fall. It only took 35 minutes, but it happened.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Michigan State looked to have the game in hand, then Kevin Love gets a three-point play and UCLA gets a steal and a breakway dunk. The game is tied, and if I'm Tom Izzo, I want the ball in Drew Neitzel's hands.
Josh Shipp is guarding Neitzel, who misses the three. It's UCLA ball with 55.5 seconds left, and UCLA coach Ben Howland just called a timeout. If you are UCLA, do you give the ball to Shipp or do you send it into Love to put up the shot and try and draw the foul?
I would go with Love.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- As soon as UCLA ties up the game, it has a shot-clock violation, and Michigan State gets a two-handed jam by Marquis Gray. Then Gray commits his first foul of the game.
Lorenzo Mata-Real shoots two from the line for UCLA and gets nothing. Michigan State takes a timeout up two and with the ball.
My money is on getting the ball to Drew Neitzel, possibly off a double screen. And what do they do!!! Neitzel for a killer three, but Kevin Love answers with a field goal and the foul.
63-60 Michigan State.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- UCLA had a chance to pull within one, but Russell Westbrook and his artistic mohawk missed the free throw after the made basket and foul.
Michigan State got the lead back to four after Drew Naymick hit a 17-footer. Westbrook drove the lane and got the foul and has pulled UCLA to within two. Michigan State hasn't broken down defensively at all, and UCLA's shots have just started falling. Westbrook just stole the ball and tied the game.
Strap in folks.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Michigan State has a never-ending supply of guys over 6-foot-8 that can guard Kevin Love. They may not seem like they are doing the job considering he has 18 points, but it could have been a lot worse.
Love has had to work for every single one of those 18 points. UCLA has settled into a rythm and is looking better, and then they give up a hook shot to Idong Ibok, who then blocks a shot at the other end.
Michigan State is keeping the the lead in control at six points. Ibok has just fouled out, so bring in the next big guy, Izzo.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Both teams have started to trade baskets. Drew Neitzel is starting to take his open looks, but the bad news for the Spartans is that Josh Shipp is starting to hit his shots.
Shipp has 16 points and has pushed the Bruins to within four at 48-44. Other than Kevin Love and Shipp, UCLA hasn't had much offensive production.
Michigan State has had players in all the right spots, much like Marquis Gray, who was there to put back Drew Neitzel's airball with one second left on the shot clock. Lorenzo Mata-Real answered to keep UCLA hot, but Josh Shipp just committed his third foul wth 10:40 left.
Now the question is, will Ben Howland sit Shipp with three fouls? Who else will step up offensively for UCLA? Michigan State seems to have an answer for everything UCLA throws at them. The way that Tom Izzo has been rotating his big men has been impressive.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- UCLA has gotten hot. Two straight dunks, one by Josh Shipp and Alfred Aboya, has pulled UCLA to within five of Michigan State.
Drew Naymick had an answer, though, with a baby hook. Kevin Love is looking like a bull in a China shop right now. That guy is a wrecking ball in the lane, but he still has the finesse game, which he didn't just show by traveling on the next possession. He also gets the calls, as if the refs love the fundamentals.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- As the second half begins, we will see which team has made the necessary adjustments to win the game.
UCLA came out on the opening possesion of the second half and got the ball to Josh Shipp, who immediately took the shot. He made it and got the foul, but he just keeps chucking it up.
Lucky for him, Kevin Love can get postion down low and rebound. It's all for nothing, though, when you let Drew Neitzel take it coast to coast on you. Neitzel is starting to take more control, which could spell trouble for UCLA if he gets hot.
Right now it's Michigan State 40, UCLA 32.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Michigan State looks like it is playing a Division II school in an exhibition game, not one of the top teams in the country. The Spartans are getting everything, with little-used centers like redshirt 7-foot freshman Tom Herzog getting back door dunks.
Drew Neitzel just got fouled while shooting a three with 13 seconds left in the first half. UCLA has been knocked off its game and they are just playing individual ball. Whenever Josh Shipp gets the ball he automatically puts up the shot.
Kevin Love is the only one getting decent looks, and that's only because he is directly under the basket. UCLA has really unravelled from last night. I would not want to be in the UCLA locker room at halftime with Coach Ben Howland.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- UCLA just can't seem to put a run together. Michigan State has an answer every time. More often than not it has been a tip in or the ball just bounced the right way, but it has been working.
Kevin Love has just been getting harassed. Michigan State still leads by a score of 27-17. Kevin Love is dangerously close to getting called for a moving screen, I think I just saw him throw three on the last possesion. Michigan State answered a UCLA field goal with a wide open alley oop. Izzo keeps shuttling in these 6'10" players to harass Kevin Love. With 2:47 left in the first half Michigan State is in the driver's seat, 30-19.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- How do you defend a 6-foot-10 freshman that is already one of the most skilled players in the country?
Idong Ibok, thats how.
Ibok, the 6-foot-11 junior for MIchigan State has been constantly battling Kevin Love, and while he may not necessarily be stopping him, he is definitely slowing him down. He may just be fouling him, but he is wreaking havoc under the basket for UCLA.
Michigan State is still leading 20-11, but Kevin Love keeps getting the ball underneath, fighting his way up and getting the bucket plus the foul. Ibok just got his third foul, so I guess Izzo figured he had five fouls to guard Love with in the first half.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- In order for UCLA to even have a chance in this game someone has to step up. Kevin Love is showing that he wants it. He is battling double teams from Michgan State at the free throw line, taking defenders off the dribble and rebounding. He only has one field goal, but he seems to be more in tune to the pace of the game than the rest of his teammates.
Michigan State is definately in control of the game, although the score is only 10-4 in favor of the Spartan. Drew Neitzel just drained a three-pointer and then took a seat on the bench. Love certainly is getting the love from the officials, getting several foul calls while battling for position.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- UCLA has made seven trips down to the offensive side of the floor...and done nothing. Drew Neitzel ending the specualtion that he was hurt by entering the game with 14:36 left in the first half.
UCLA hasn't been getting bad looks, it just seems like there is a lid on the basketball. Josh Shipp scored UCLA's first points at the 14:21 mark. Shipp has been trying to put the bulk of the offensive load on his shoulders.
I will tell you what, though, at 18-years-old, Kevin Love is one of the best rebounders I have ever seen. He plays as a freshman like Tyler Hansborough of North Carolina plays now. Two consecutive travels by each team leaves us with a score of 8-2 in favor of Michigan State.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Both Ben Howland and Tom Izzo preach defense, and thats what it has been so far. That and bad decisions by UCLA on the offensive end.
Michigan State has been going right at freshman phenom Kevin Love and have a 4-0 lead. Drew Neitzel is on the bench for the Spartans, and Kevin Love is preparing to check back in after a short breather. Michigan State looks very dominant defensively. Ben Howland has called a timeout after going scoreless in the first four minutes.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- You wouldn't know that two Top 15 teams are about to tip off. The Sprint Center is slowly emptying out after the Missouri game.
The high school bands that are substituting for the schools marching bands aren't doing much to help pump up the remaining crowd though. As it nears 9:30 p.m. on a Tuesday night, many casual fans have opted out of staying to watch the final game. Bumping the Kanye isn't even doing anything.
This should prove to be an impressive match up between two very fundamentally strong teams. And of course, the UCLA dance squad is always worth staying up late for.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Two Drew Neitzel free throws sealed the win for Michigan State. In what could have been a very interesting finish, Missouri just missed the halfcourt heave-ho shot that would have sent the game into overtime.
Missouri showed heart and toughness, staples of Mike Anderson's style, and almost gutted out a win against a very fundamentally strong Michigan State team.
Final score: Michigan State 86, Missouri 83.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missouri has once again pulled to within two. It's Michigan State's ball with 20 seconds left. Missouri goes to the full court press and.....it fails, sort of.
The Tigers are looking for the steal but their defense was no match for Drew Neitzel and Kalin Lucas, breaking the press and finding Goran Suton, who layed the ball in for a three-point lead. Missouri, however, drove down and scored with three seconds left to pull within one.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Just when you think the game is over, Stefon Hannah comes down and nails a three to pull MIssouri to within two with 30 seconds left. I want to hold up a sign for Tom Izzo that says "GIVE NEITZEL THE BALL!!"
Missouri fouled Raymar Morgan on the inbound pass, and the sophomore made both free throws to put Michigan State up, 82-78. Matt Lawrence has checked in for Missouri to chuck up three-pointers.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Planning and execution, that is what it takes to win close games. With 1:36 left we will see who has it, Michigan State or Missouri.
Michigan State leads 77-75 and has the ball. Goran Suton just nailed a baby hook as the shot clock expired to put MIchigan State up by four, and Marshall Brown was called for traveling violation. It's Michigan State's ball with 49 seconds left.
Now we get into foul-fest, which I think Missouri has been in all night.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Marshall Brown lost the ball to Drew Naymick on what could have been the go-ahead score for Missouri, but Michigan State couldn't capitalize.
Drew Neitzel just drilled a three, which could be a dagger in the heart of Missouri's comeback hopes. Michigan State leads, 77-72, with 2:14 left. If I am Tom Izzo, I keep the ball in Neitzel's hands.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- WIth five minutes to go, Michigan State leads by one, and the crowd is a player. Kalin Lucas hit a field goal from the top of the key to put Michigan State up by three and then Drew Naymick fouled Missouri's Marshall Brown, who hit one of two from the free throw line.
Michigan State failed to convert on the their ensuing possesion and lost the offensive board out of bounds, leaving the door open for Missouri to take the lead with 3:46 left. Right now, it's Michigan State 74, Missouri 72.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The crowd reached a fevered pitch as Drew Neitzel coming off a double screen had his shot blocked.
Missouri pressed it down the floor and botched the layup. However, the unsung hero for the Tigers, DeMarre Carroll, was there to clean it up.
The Vanderbilt transfer's putback pulled the Tiger's to within three and gave Carroll 12 points on the night. Michigan State has been saved by its free throws. The Spartans went 16-for-18 in the first half and have been on the money in the second half.
Everything gets lost, though, when you allow Missuori to drive the lane and score. 68-66, in favor of Michigan State.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- You lose focus for one minute and everything changes. A couple quick turnovers on Michigan State and suddenly Missouri is back in the game.
Michigan State is clinging to a five-point lead, but the crowd has woken up. The fans went crazy as Stefon Hannah stole the ball on the press and passed it forward to DeMarre Carroll for the breakway dunk.
I was questioning Missouri's small line up with DeMarre Carroll being the tallest palyer on the floor for the Tigers at 6-foot-8. The faster lineup worked, though, as the press broke down Michigan State. Missouri is within three, 67-64.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Always be wary of freshman point guards. Kalin Lucas almost lost the ball for Michigan State in the full court press. The disruption, though, allowed Missouri to put some momentum together and pull to within seven, 65-58.
Michigan State tried to go low post but lost the ball. Unfortunatley, Missouri doesn't know how to do anything on the block but foul. Michigan State ball with 9:30 left.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missouri finished the first half on a frenzy, pulling within 10, but the Spartans came out at the half and extended the lead back to 11. Drew Neitzel has re-entered the game for Michigan State, adding four points to bring his total to 16 so far.
Missouri's leading scorer and sparkplug Stefon Hannah only has eight points for the game. The Tigers have just put up a 4-0 run and gone into the full court press, firing up the crowd. It's Michigan State 65, Missouri 56.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missouri is showing some life on the low post, Marshall Brown just had his second block on a Spartan driving to the hoop. The Tigers are running into foul trouble though, Darryl Butterfield, one of their more physical inside players is on the bench with three fouls.
Drew Neitzel is still on the bench for MIchigan State, but things seem fine without him. MIchigan State leads by 12 with one minute left in the half.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Michigan State's zone has shown to be extremely effective, especially with Missouri's reluctance to establish a low post game. Marshall Brown just fired up his fellow Missouri Tigers with a block, but the momentum was soon lost by a TV timeout.
Michigan State leads by 13, with sophomore Raymar Morgan picking up the offensive slack scoring 11 points for the Spartans during Neitzel's absence.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Drew Neitzel seems to be playing in some pain, but that didn't stop him from draining two free throws. MIke Anderson just got T's up after Missouri was whistled for another offensive foul. The crowd, which is primarily made up of Missouri fans, has been booing loudly for the past two minutes.
Missouri's press hasn't slowed MIchigan State down at all, and Missouri has been whistled for another foul, putting Michigan State in the double bonus. Michigan State leads, 46-30, with six minutes left in the first half.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Stefon Hannah drained a three, and Darryl Butterfield followed it up with a field goal to pull MIssouri to within six, 36-30. Kalin Lucas just made two free throws for Michigan State to push the lead back to eight, 38-30.
Michigan State seems to find a way to stop any sort of Missouri run. Missouri also seems helpless on the boards. Michigan State is already in the one-and-one bonus.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Drew Neitzel just went to the bench with his 2nd foul, 9:55 left in the first half. Missouri has fallen back out of the full court press, but the crowd is back in the game. Missouri doesn't seem to be looking to the low post game much. The Tigers are mainly driving the lane or putting it up from three.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- It didn't take Mizzou long to switch into the full court press, Michigan State had minimal trouble breaking it but did so without Neitzel. Missouri is playing at a frantic pace, almost seemingly out of control. Neitzel has re-entered the game to provide Michigan State with some offensive firepower and ballhandling.
Michigan State switched into a zone defense, but then immediately gave up a 3 pointer. Missouri has pulled to within 7 points, 30-23 advantage Michigan State.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Mike Anderson's version of the 40 minutes of hell has suddenly put Missouri back into the game. After two offensive fould against Michigan State and two unanswered baskets by Mizzou, Michigan State finds its lead at eight, 26-18, at 11:45 in the first half.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The marquee match up for the local fans has gotten off to a less than rousing start. Michigan State leads Missouri, 19-8, five minutes into the game. Drew Neitzel leads all scorers with 12 points.
