Big Names Abound In This Final Foursome
3/17/2000 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
March 17, 2000
By TOM WITHERS
AP Sports Writer
CLEVELAND - Utah coach Rick Majerus sat down to fill out his NCAA tournament brackets the other day, and picked winners with his stomach, not his heart.
Although he realized his Utes were on a collision course with No. 1 seed Michigan State in the Midwest Regional, Majerus went with the Spartans anyway.
"Hey, I got pools going like everybody else," Majerus said Friday. "You know, a couple of pizzas here, there. I got them winning it."
Michigan State's next step in getting back to the Final Four for the second straight year comes Saturday when it faces No. 8 seed Utah in the second round.
In the earlier game, No. 4 seed Syracuse meets No. 5 seed Kentucky in a rematch of the 1996 NCAA title game.
There isn't a sub-regional in the tournament with four schools remaining which can match the hoops history of this foursome. All have made trips to the Final Four in the last five years with the Wildcats winning two titles.
"These are some huge basketball names," said Spartans coach Tom Izzo. "They're names that bring a lot of excitement to this region."
And right now, there isn't a team that's bringing more game than Michigan State (27-7).
The Spartans certainly looked deserving of a No. 1 seed in the first round on Thursday with a 65-38 thrashing of No. 16 seed Valparaiso.
Michigan State's relentless man-to-man defense never gave the Crusaders a chance to do anything, limiting Valpo to 25 percent shooting from the field.
Majerus said he watched the first 15 minutes of the Spartans' blowout, "got depressed and turned off the TV."
He resumed scouting them early Friday morning following the Utes (23-8) sloppy first-round win over Saint Louis. Majerus, regarded as one of the nation's best prepared coaches, popped in a couple of videos of the Spartans.
He liked everything about them. Majerus is impressed with the Spartans' strength, size, defense, depth, experience, point guard Mateen Cleaves, Morris Peterson, etc. Name it, Michigan State's got it.
"I applaud them," Majerus said. "I love watching them play. We watched a lot of film. It's fun to see a good team play. A team that plays hard. A team that shares the ball. I don't see a discernible weakness. They're so accustomed to their roles."
Michigan State may be better known for its hawking defense, but what caught Majerus' eye was how well the Spartans share the offensive load.
"There's no jealousy or internal strife relative to who's successful," he said. "They are equal-opportunity assassins."
And while Michigan State has all kinds of weapons, Utah is almost out of bullets.
Starting guard Jeremy Killion tore a knee ligament in the win over Saint Louis while both center starting center Nate Althoff (back) and reserve guard Adam Sharp (leg) may not be able to play against Michigan State.
"Our 2 guard is on crutches, he's out," Majerus said. "We have seven scholarship players. But the No. 1 thing I want to do now is rally the troops. I think we've go to buck up here.
"We know what the task is ahead. We have seven guys, and I told those guys, 'At some point, we're going to have to play you guys when you're tired', and the kid with the leg is going to have to play hurt."