Postgame: Tom Izzo on MSU-Tennessee exhibition
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00:00 I kept asking myself that on the bench.
00:02 Now there were a lot of good things.
00:04 Now there were some good things and
00:06 there were some things that really bothered me.
00:09 I'm giving them a lot of credit.
00:12 They came in and shot the pay lights out of it early.
00:15 And I didn't think we guarded very well, but
00:18 I thought they made some shots too that we didn't expect.
00:21 The turnovers were a joke.
00:24 I mean, theirs were worse.
00:26 Rick's not real happy either.
00:28 But our turnovers led to some touchdowns that they got early.
00:31 And then that was a depressing moment when you get down,
00:36 what is it, 17 to 1 or something?
00:38 >> 18.
00:39 >> 18 to 1, not that you're counting.
00:41 >> I wouldn't count.
00:42 >> 18 to 1, I guess my team deserves some credit for
00:48 coming back from that.
00:51 I thought as well as Tyson played, Malik Hall did the things.
00:55 He missed two layups and he did the things though that I needed from him.
01:00 Gets a double double, gets 14 and 11, gets to the free throw line.
01:04 I thought he played pretty well.
01:07 And Tyson, it's like we have to do a better job of getting him involved earlier.
01:15 Because we had some guys that just didn't over dribble,
01:20 over handle it early and ball movement wasn't as good.
01:23 And that's because they're really good defensively and they're big.
01:27 And those guys were 6'5", 6'6".
01:32 They had some big guards and that hurt us a little bit.
01:36 Freshman, I think Jeremy's gonna be fine.
01:40 But when you take it in there on those big guys, it's hard to get it up.
01:45 I thought Trey Holloman played really well early, got us back in the game a little
01:49 bit, Cohen played pretty well.
01:52 And Xavier did okay, we didn't get him as much time for a couple of reasons.
01:57 But there was a disappointment, it was our wings,
02:01 our guards gotta get more rebounds, James didn't have a rebound.
02:05 And our bigs had been playing really well in practice in there and
02:09 didn't play very well.
02:10 So with that said, you lose by one and
02:14 a game that I think was a hell of a game for the people.
02:19 And most important, and that's why we did it,
02:22 I hope it does bring light on the people from Maui.
02:26 There's so many things when something happens there and
02:29 all of a sudden something happens in Russia and then something happens in Israel.
02:34 And it seems like it gets by the wayside a little bit.
02:38 And Maui, I've been there, next year will be my fifth time.
02:42 I think Rick, this year is gonna be his fourth time.
02:46 So it meant a lot to both of us, because when you go there, you're treated so well.
02:51 And I thought our people here did a great job, it was a phenomenal crowd.
02:58 It's not easy during football to have a crowd like that.
03:04 And so I give a lot to our fans, our students,
03:09 they're marketing their tickets to everybody, they did a great job.
03:13 So questions, I'll take them.
03:17 >> I know that we kinda saw the full court defense a little bit,
03:22 more in Hillsdale, and you saw it a lot here tonight.
03:27 I guess for an opponent like this, I know they were without their top two guards,
03:31 but how much does that help integrate something like that into your program?
03:35 It's a little bit different.
03:37 >> Well, I was pleased with that.
03:38 What I didn't get to do is rotate guys enough.
03:41 I probably, if I had to do it over again,
03:45 I'd get trained Jeremy a few more minutes in there, a little cleaner rotation.
03:51 But they played 11, 12 minutes, that's more than a lot of freshmen do.
03:54 And even both played eight or nine minutes.
03:59 So just getting that rotation down will be very important.
04:04 But there was a reason they turned it over too.
04:07 Our defense was pretty good in that, in the full court.
04:11 In the half court, we weren't very good.
04:14 And that's what we gotta continue to work on.
04:17 >> Tom, can you reflect that kind of a win-win-win deal,
04:19 both teams get to experience a March-like game in October and
04:24 raising funds and awareness?
04:26 >> Yeah, that's I think the best part of the game, and that's what Rick and
04:29 I talked about before the game, during the game a few times, and after the game.
04:35 It was cool, I mean, we both, we went away and
04:40 we had our Maui shirts on, it was just the right thing to do.
04:47 And it was the right opportunity the NCAA gave us to do something like that.
04:51 And I don't know how much money that'll end up raising, but
04:54 a lot more than it would have if it was an empty place.
04:57 And as far as for us, the crowd was phenomenal.
05:01 I think it really helped us get back in the game, they should feel good about that.
05:06 Tennessee should feel good that they were able to handle a crowd like that and
05:11 get back in plays.
05:13 Every time we cut it to six or four, they made a play.
05:16 And I told Rick, that was my most impressive thing with them.
05:19 Those two guys, the new guys he got, really played well, Ganey and Connect.
05:26 And they really, really, really played well, and that was the difference in the game.
05:31 >> Tom, since you first sat with us at the beginning of the season,
05:34 I've been calling this your master class on leadership.
05:37 And one of the elements you emphasize is communication.
05:39 One, can you evaluate the communication?
05:41 And why is communication so difficult at this time?
05:46 >> I think you evaluated it yourself.
05:48 We had some slip ups, we had switches, and guys were wide open in the basket.
05:52 Some of it's playing different lineups, some of them is the way they ran things.
05:56 And some of it was just mistakes.
05:59 I mean, they knew it right away when they did it, they knew it.
06:02 We need more practice on that, that's why this game was so important.
06:07 I mean, when you think about, was it a good thing or a bad thing?
06:11 It was such a good thing to play this game.
06:13 You never feel good when you don't win, but it was good in a lot of reasons and
06:19 ways, not only for us and for Rick, but of course for Maui.
06:23 And even for our fans, I think it was awesome for our fans.
06:26 You get to see a top five, ten team come in here, and
06:30 that team has picked them in the SEC, and you can all see why.
06:35 I mean, they're gonna be good, and they've got depth too.
06:38 But their young guys struggled too, just like maybe a couple of ours did.
06:43 But yeah, I think all in all, the communication,
06:48 why is it hard?
06:51 Cuz the damn NCAA and Nike won't let us put these on their belt buckles.
06:55 Guys don't know how to talk, and they gotta text, they gotta send an email.
07:02 Those don't work with uniforms.
07:04 So we're trying to constantly get our guys to communicate more.
07:11 And we've done a little better job, but today there were some times, that's where
07:15 Monty and Coop usually are good at calling out those screens, and
07:18 we just didn't do it.
07:20 But now we gotta wait to get better.
07:23 >> Thank you.
07:24 >> Other than the microphones and the wild shirts,
07:27 did that feel like the end of the fishing game, or
07:29 did that feel like March a little bit?
07:31 >> Well, that felt like March.
07:32 Are you kidding me?
07:33 I asked Rick, are we stupid or what?
07:35 We don't need this.
07:37 In October, a couple of people sitting next to me, I said, damn.
07:43 I got five more months of this.
07:45 But that's a good thing.
07:47 It really, really is.
07:48 It's a good thing.
07:49 And it's really good for our players.
07:51 And in some ways, my philosophy around here, it's good to get punched in the mouth.
07:56 Cuz I thought we did early.
07:57 I thought we got punched right in the mouth.
08:00 And I did think we'd come back.
08:01 I mean, thanks to getting that rebound late, the smallest guy on the floor,
08:05 I think tells you a little bit about him.
08:07 We just gotta get more out of a couple of guys that I think have it to give.
08:12 And those freshmen, Jeremy and Trey Holloman and
08:15 Colin will get Booker going here.
08:19 We're gonna get better.
08:21 So I still like everything about my team.
08:24 I was a little disappointed that a couple of guys defensively didn't play as good as
08:29 I thought they would.
08:30 >> I know they had a lot of shots, but
08:31 was it okay to get your butts kicked in the first ten minutes or for some reason?
08:35 >> Well, yeah, you know what, Fred?
08:37 I was sitting there and I looked up and it was 17 to 1.
08:41 And I said, God, this is fun.
08:46 Hell no, it wasn't okay.
08:47 >> I'm sure some of your young players do realize what that level was like.
08:53 >> I'm kidding you, I can have fun today because we did something for Maui.
08:58 I played against a good friend of mine.
09:00 And I do think that's a good point.
09:04 We had a couple recruits in there, and I said,
09:07 you skinny guys better get a lot tougher.
09:11 Cuz there's no question that that'd be one of the more physical athletic teams.
09:17 There's physical teams, and then there's athletic teams.
09:21 When you get physicality and athleticism and some size,
09:24 that's what makes them a pretty good team.
09:27 Now they had some problems too, getting the ball up to the floor.
09:31 And they're gonna have some decisions to make on those big guys.
09:34 The bigger guards can do, they can defend better, but
09:40 they can't run the ball like those smaller guards.
09:46 The smaller guards don't shoot it as well.
09:48 I mean, the guys that he's out, and he's got one guard that's really good.
09:52 But they don't play better than those two guys play.
09:56 I mean, he told me after that was the best and hardest connect he had played.
10:00 So connect, so that means that's good for them too.
10:04 So I just thought all in all, it was a great game.
10:09 It's sad to end it that way.
10:12 And was it a foul or not a foul?
10:14 He asked me a good question.
10:18 He said, well, if it was the other way, would you want it called?
10:21 I said, hell no.
10:22 I'd like to win the game on the floor, not on the free throw line.
10:26 Now if it was during the regular season, hell yes.
10:29 >> [LAUGH]
10:30 >> But it was a bang, bang.
10:33 I mean, it could have gone either way.
10:35 I mean, as they all said to me, officials are,
10:39 that was as high a caliber game as they'll do probably in the next two months.
10:46 And that one of the higher caliber games we'll play in.
10:50 I don't care if it's Duke or anybody else.
10:51 I mean, the advantage of playing in a game like this as an exhibition game is
10:56 you don't care about fouls as much and things like that.
10:58 That was a tough game to play.
11:00 And it was a tough game to officiate.
11:02 And I learned a little lesson there too.
11:05 I had a couple guys that are chirping at the officials.
11:08 That'll be ended tonight.
11:11 Cuz that's one thing that's not gonna be tolerated.
11:14 Hell, I say the only fun I had was get the player yelling at him and
11:18 he takes away my fun.
11:20 >> Coach, it goes without saying that Tyson Walker had a great game on
11:27 the offensive side of the floor, but he also had five steals today.
11:30 How encouraged are you about his defensive growth?
11:32 >> I mean, I think nobody would argue that he's the best player on the floor for
11:38 us, cuz he can do it all ways.
11:42 And we probably played him too many minutes, to be honest with you.
11:50 But hope to get that down a little bit.
11:53 But as you can tell, he's probably the best conditioned guy on the team.
11:55 I love the way he played.
11:59 I love the way he was.
12:00 One time he had a little ollie with the official, and
12:02 that and the huddles, he was phenomenal.
12:04 He's grown a lot, and he's a good player.
12:08 And we have to get him more involved.
12:11 I wasn't him, that's all.
12:12 So some of that falls on the coaches too.
12:14 >> Coach, you just alluded to it a little bit a second ago.
12:20 Some of the run-ins that your players had with the refs today showed the intensity
12:24 of the game and the emotional connection they had to it.
12:26 But I also saw you doing a lot of correcting with the players on the sideline.
12:30 How does a game like this, albeit an exhibition,
12:33 prep you guys emotionally for the season?
12:34 >> Well, it gave us a chance to run something at the end that we didn't execute
12:37 quite right.
12:38 It gave us a chance.
12:39 One time we looked at a two for one early.
12:43 I mean, it really, I'm sure for Rick too,
12:47 I mean it really was a game that I can't believe it was 89-88 with 37 turnovers.
12:56 And that's hard to do.
12:58 So maybe there's a positive in there.
13:02 And after we were down 17, when did we have one?
13:06 How many minutes were left in the half?
13:07 >> Twelve.
13:08 >> Did Tom roll a four minute thing?
13:10 >> No, no, no. >> You mean when you got the one point?
13:12 >> Yeah.
13:14 Is that the first five minutes, six minutes?
13:15 >> Five minutes.
13:16 >> Four.
13:17 >> First four.
13:17 >> It was nine nothing out of the gate.
13:19 >> Yeah, then 17 to one or something.
13:21 So we probably went and scored 87 points in 34 or five minutes.
13:32 That's pretty good on a positive, and against a team that's good defensively.
13:37 And they probably felt the same thing,
13:39 cuz I think he thinks we're pretty good defensively.
13:41 So our defenses didn't show up.
13:43 We turned the ball over too much, both of us.
13:46 He shot the ball better.
13:50 He had a couple guys that really shot it well.
13:53 Six for ten and eight for 16.
13:56 That's two pretty good nights.
13:58 But even though Malik was three for nine, I'd have to give Tyson the star of the game.
14:05 But I put Malik right there,
14:07 cuz he did everything I need him to do for us to be successful.
14:11 >> I know you told us the other day that there's certain benefits to doing it
14:15 privately and how you can tinker it and adjust things.
14:18 But having gone through this now, I'm just wondering if you think the benefits of
14:22 something like this outweighs that, and would you like to see these type of things
14:25 continue, should they, could they move forward and be more of a regular thing?
14:29 >> Yeah, I really enjoyed it, especially, I did a couple times with Gonzaga.
14:36 When you have friends that you have that you can play against, and
14:39 not tomorrow or even tonight.
14:41 Rick and I'll talk about how much we each, he's met at his team, I've met at mine.
14:47 But you get a lot done, you get a lot to talk about.
14:49 And when you can attach it to a fundraising deal, it's pretty cool.
14:58 When I say fundraising, I mean charity, that's pretty neat.
15:04 Whether it be that or I can see whether it be for the Boys and
15:07 Girls Club or something to help people.
15:10 We're near Thanksgiving, feed people, homeless.
15:15 Could we do something with this to help now?
15:18 You look at it, the university's gonna lose money.
15:22 But if we did it for nothing, the university wouldn't have gotten it anyway,
15:27 if we played it and there was no crowds.
15:30 So I wanna thank all the people that came and spent their money on this.
15:35 I think you got your money's worth as far as the game.
15:38 I think the long team won if you're a Spartan fan.
15:41 But it was a hell of a game.
15:46 I kept sitting on the bench.
15:48 I said, man, this is a high intensity game, and that was early.
15:52 So we got a lot of work to do, but this will give us something to check our words
15:58 and figure out we're gonna get those wings rebounding a little better.
16:02 And we'll get the ball better, and we'll get better.
16:09 >> In terms of the teaching value though, to have the environment,
16:12 like if you were to go down there with that crowd, versus-
16:14 >> Yeah, I'd go down there.
16:16 I'd go down there too.
16:17 I mean, I prefer playing, that's why we play one of the games in front of people.
16:23 If you do Division II, you can play in front of them.
16:28 And I do that, so a freshman, or
16:30 new people can get up in front of a crowd for the first time.
16:34 Cuz we had a decent crowd the other night.
16:37 This was a great crowd, and I think we saw some guys,
16:40 the old deer in headlights look, you know?
16:43 So yeah, I think it's a good deal.
16:46 I think it's a good thing.
16:46 I think it's a really good thing for Moffat.
16:49 >> One more, Mike.
16:51 >> Yeah, Tom, your reference, kind of see the top five team earlier this week.
16:54 What did they do tonight that validated that?
16:56 And I guess specifically the two new transfers,
16:59 what did you think of them tonight?
17:02 >> Well, Rick and I have been friends since he was at Texas, and
17:05 we've always had tight games.
17:07 It doesn't seem like it started, I think, the first one at Madison Square Garden was
17:11 a one point game at the end, we played the NCAA tournaments.
17:15 And I know the way he coaches, I know what he does.
17:19 But I think he's got more depth than he's normally had,
17:22 he gets his guard back.
17:24 I think he's, he's got,
17:28 he's got interchangeable parts.
17:32 He can bring those bigs in and, you know, a walker is a man.
17:37 I mean, he's just a man child and he gives him a different look than the other kid.
17:42 And I do, and then he brings in those two young guys that he's got that I
17:48 think have size if you run into a team with big size.
17:51 But all those wing guys are 6'5", and athletic, and long.
17:57 And I don't know how well they shoot it, but
18:00 I think he's a good kid, and you know, Deleon, he hit a three.
18:06 Josiah, I recruited Josiah's dad, played here,
18:10 he probably just hit a three just to stick it to me, but I was really happy for him.
18:15 Great kid.
18:17 Maszczyk, he hit a three.
18:20 You know, they were very efficient too.
18:22 They didn't take bad ones, they were one for one, one for two, one for one,
18:26 one for one.
18:27 And the two best shooters go four for seven, three for nine.
18:31 That's good.
18:32 I mean, that's good.
18:34 So they're well coached.
18:35 They got depth.
18:36 They got experience.
18:38 Even their transfers are juniors, seniors in one case, grad student.
18:43 I mean, I think since he's a good friend of mine,
18:49 that's a big push for him, that's a Final Four team.
18:51 I really believe that.
18:53 I really do.
18:53 And I think he feels good about that too.
18:57 And he'll be good, he'll be lucky, he'll be all those things.
19:00 But Tennessee's a team that's gonna beat a lot of people.
19:04 And they got a team that has a legitimate shot because they have enough depth and
19:09 they have enough different, like they put James,
19:16 Josiah, they put him at the threesome and went real big.
19:19 So they can go real big or they can go small and put him at the four.
19:23 And I think when you can do that, that's always healthy in a tournament when you
19:27 run up to different styles and different kinds of teams.
19:30 And this will help him, cuz he played a Big Ten team now and
19:34 we played a SEC team, and it's gonna help us help him.
19:37 Everybody wins, referees won.
19:40 I mean, that was a high intensity game for them.
19:43 And I told them towards the end, that's a hard game to officiate to.
19:47 I mean, it was physical as hell.
19:49 And so hopefully our fans won.
19:52 Hopefully it was everybody won except I gotta look at it,
19:55 I didn't win on the scoreboard.
19:57 But what I got out of that game was way better than any other game I could play or
20:04 a game that I won by 20.
20:07 Cuz our kids learned that they took it to us and yet we bounced back.
20:13 And when you're down that big to a team that good and you come back and
20:16 you have a chance to win it at the end, that's pretty good.
20:19 Anything else?
20:21 Thanks for the session.